Lock And Key
by micatite
Summary: Because sometimes the lack of a key is what's needed to unlock a whole new chapter in life. Senshi X Shitennou.
1. Pleadings And Promises

Chapter 1 – Pleadings and Promises

"Please Mako-chan. You've got to do it! I already promised everyone! And it's for Valentine's Day."

Minako's big baby blue eyes implored her victim and she stuck her clasped hands under her chin to make the effect even more heart rending. It might have worked on strangers, but the party she was pleading with was, after years of contact, immune…well, mostly. Kino Makoto frowned, rubbing her temple, and slouched back against the cheap plywood and veneer headboard of her narrow dorm bed. She was definitely getting a headache.

"Minako-chan," she said, her tone rather on edge. "You did NOT just tell me you volunteered my baking services for your stupid sorority party…DID YOU?" She crossed both arms over her chest and pierced her friend with a look that promised death if the answer to her question was in the affirmative.

The perky blonde stuck a hand behind her head and laughed in an embarrassed fashion. "Um…well…"

"MINAKO!"

"Gomen nasai," she whispered hastily, "but they all raved about how good the stuff I brought to the last party was and I had kind of…well, passed them off as my own, and then…"

Makoto shot her friend a venomous look that guaranteed certain vengeance for claiming credit for her culinary talents. Not to mention the whole volunteering her services without asking thing.

Aino Minako visibly flinched. Makoto had a very intimidating stare when she wanted to and was very protective of what she considered to be her turf…in this case, the kitchen. But what was a girl to do when she needed sweets, couldn't bake them herself, was head of the Valentine's Party committee, and had a friend in a culinary arts program?

"Mako-chan, I really, REALLY am sorry about that. Honest. I swear, I'll tell them everything afterward, but I really had no choice. Please, say you'll bake for me this time and I swear I'll never ask again. Promise. Cross my heart. Swear on my mother's grave." She drew an X over her chest and then solemnly placed one hand on her breast and raised the other in the air.

"Your mother's not dead," Makoto informed her friend unkindly.

"Well a girl could hope," shot back Minako with a slight grimace, wrinkling her pert nose.

It wasn't that Minako was hateful which made her say such a thing. Far from it. However, her bad relationship with her mother was fairly notorious. Even Makoto, who'd lost both her parents to a plane crash while just a child and personally would have killed for a chance to see her own mother again, had sympathy for just how bad the strain was between Minako and her mom. Which still didn't mean that she was inclined to let Minako get away with manipulating her like this. She stared balefully at Minako, her face set in uncompromising lines.

"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!!"

"No!"

"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!! With sugar and a cherry on top!"

"No."

"C'mon, Mako-chan. PLEEEEEEASE! How about this? I let YOU tell the girls personally. You can out me as a phony in front of the whole group AND take credit for your baking. You can get kudos and see me get humiliated in public and I'll take the whole blame. PLEEEEEASE!"

"I said no," grated Makoto, looking harassed.

"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!! You can come to the party too. There'll be lots and lots of cute guys. You might meet someone…"

"Minako..."

Minako grinned furtively. She could hear it in Makoto's voice. Her friend was definitely weakening. It was just going to take a little more groveling on her part. Which was okay with her as long as the cookies got baked and as long as SHE didn't have to make them, since her cooking skills essentially began and ended with cup ramen and toast.

"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!! I swear…I'll make sure you meet someone."

"Fine." Makoto gave in to what could not be helped, rubbing her temple and rummaging around through her nightstand looking for the aspirin bottle. Minako's incessant whining had definitely given her a headache. Still, she wasn't going down alone. Not if she could drag her so-called friend with her. "I'm outing you, though, for sure. And you have to pay for all of the cookie ingredients yourself. I'm not going into debt for you. Not all of us have regular income from movies we starred in when we were thirteen."

The sad fact was, despite Makoto's generous scholarship and a life insurance stipend from her parents' estate, her expenses were barely covered. Money was definitely an issue for her. She couldn't wait until she could get a full-time job and start banking some cash for herself and maybe buy a car. Lack of one had meant she'd had to leave her cozy little apartment, sublet it out to a stranger and leave virtually all of her precious plants behind to move into the dirty brown closet that the university mistakenly called a single dorm room. Its only saving grace was that it _was_ a single since she'd been able to successfully argue that the knives necessary for her Culinary Arts major might well unnerve a roommate. So at least she had peace and quiet. Except when Minako or the girls were visiting.

Minako leapt on her friend, hugging her until Makoto wondered if her ribs were going to crack. "I know and I will pay for it." She dug around in her wallet and handed Makoto a small wad of bills, the sight of which was enough to make Makoto green-eyed with envy, if she hadn't already been naturally green-eyed. "You're the absolute best ever, Mako-chan!"

"I'm soft in the head is what I am," grumbled the young chef-in-training, banging the medicine bottle on the scarred top of the bedside table when the child-proof cap defied her efforts at gaining access to the much needed meds inside. "Never again am I baking for the Kappas. They can starve next time or you can go buy a tray of some nasty thing at the grocery store bakery or whatever. This is it…the absolute last time. Understand?"

"Well, I've got to dash and…um…see if my order's come in. New Kappa necklace, you know. Ja ne!" Minako chirped, backing across the room.

Makoto hopped off the bed. Minako was already edging out the door, a radiant smile on her face, not deigning to acknowledge her friend's demands. "Understand? Minako-chan? MINAKO!"

It was too late. The trouble-making blonde had vanished leaving Makoto with a headache, a feeling she'd stepped into trouble, and with an order for ten dozen cookies by the end of the week…which was only two days away and which would probably just get smashed into crumbs by smashed frat boys anyway.

"I'm going to kill her, so help me," Makoto swore, wondering how on earth she was going to get enough time in the postage stamp-sized dorm kitchen to bake that many cookies, not to mention fitting it into her already tight schedule of classes and part-time job. Plus she had a research paper that she simply had to finish or she'd have to slink out of school in disgrace and an exam scheduled for Friday afternoon. Just the thought of it all made her slam the aspirin bottle down with completely unreasonable force.

Without warning the lid to the aspirin bottle flew off, scattering white tablets across Makoto's hunter green comforter. While she picked them up, Makoto kept up a comforting little running dialogue about Minako and death. "Rei will help me kill her, yes…very painfully, and Usagi can just deal. After all, she doesn't really need a security double in Crystal Tokyo anyway. Ami can create some sort of hologram to deal with it. Or something. Yes, that will be good…"

When all the stray pills were back in the bottle, Makoto swigged down the last two with the dregs of her soda and then sighed. Scooping up the handful of bills, she tried to shrug off the Very Bad Feeling that was haunting her. There was marketing to be done.

(Author's Notes: Please note that I own none of the Sailor Moon characters. Please don't sue. All standard disclaimers apply. The rating MAY go up later on. P.S. This is my first multi-chapter, non-one shot fanfic, so be gentle. :)


	2. Valentine Party Pranks

Chapter 2 – Valentine Party Pranks

"I knew I should have listened to that Very Bad Feeling," Makoto muttered in disgust, looking around at the scene of debauchery in the making. She held the enormous platter of cookies in front of her like a shield, weaving her way between necking couples and drunken freshmen, and wondered all the while if her ears would survive the assault of the stereo, which had to be pumping out just slightly fewer decibels than would result in instant perforation of eardrums. She ducked a low-hanging cluster of shiny red foil hearts which hung from an overhead light fixture and wondered yet again what had possessed her to do something as daft as listen to Minako when it didn't involve senshi combat.

She ought to have known better after so many years. Perhaps she was weak where blue-eyed blonds were concerned. It would explain the last relationship debacle she'd gone through.

Sighing, she slapped at a stray male hand which had, without warning, inched south of her personal border and shot the lecherous perpetrator an evil glare. He was busy dancing with one of Minako's sorority sisters, but apparently felt free to spread to groping around when the overly mascaraed, limb-flailing red-head wasn't looking closely.

"I am so going to kill Minako," Makoto vowed yet again. Of course that meant finding the bubbly blonde, who was probably in the thick of the throng of people who filled the dance area, which Makoto was skirting with every intention of avoiding it altogether. Grinding against perfect strangers to ear-shattering caterwauling wasn't exactly her idea of romance, especially on Valentine's Day. Which, she reflected, was probably one of the reasons, in addition to her insane schedule, why she hadn't had a date in six months. It was truly depressing.

It might have been influence of her past life or her mother having read too many fairy tales to her when she was a child, but Makoto's idea of romantic parties involved candlelight, flowers, orchestras and graceful ball gowns…and handsome, charming princes (no frogs please!) asking her to waltz, of course, and hand-in-hand walks in gardens. Or at least someone who bothered to know her name and give her some nice chocolates and take her on more than one date before expecting her to get horizontal with him. Unfortunately Makoto had also discovered that there were a lot more frogs than princes in the world.

Fortunately Makoto had an excellent right hook.

Not for the first time, she truly envied Usagi. Normally she was just mildly envious her friend had the love of a protective mother and father since she, herself, didn't have them. Not that she wanted Usagi to lose anything…just that she wished she had some for herself. However tonight, she really was jealous of the fact that her friend had a loving and adoring fiancé, which meant that she was off having a romantic (and blessedly quiet) dinner someplace with soft violins and bubbly champagne and French haute cuisine, instead of having to face Kappa Party Central and drunken frat boy party crashers who were crushing beer cans on their foreheads and burping and probably thought of it as a mating call.

Depressing. It was truly depressing. As was the thought that, of all of the Inner Senshi, it looked like Usagi alone was going to be able to find love. Even Minako was routinely striking out, though she remained ever optimistic as was her nature. Makoto, on the other hand, had started to feel cynicism setting in.

Rei would be so proud.

She was startled just then to catch a glimpse through the crowd of a girl who looked like Rei, but immediately discounted the notion. The only person less likely than their miko friend to be at the party would be Ami, who was probably puttering in her lab or curled up in a snug library carrel studying the mating rituals of proto-primates.

'Perhaps I'll send her a few specimens to dissect,' Makoto thought, dubiously eyeing a few thick-browed males who seemed rather low on the evolutionary scale and were rating every female who walked past with a score on a one to ten scale.

"Seven," one of the less drunken Neanderthals called out as she walked past and Makoto growled softly. Her chest alone should have garnered her at least an eight, maybe an eight and a half or nine, not that she cared what the drunken idiots thought. Still, it stung a bit.

"Halfwits," she mumbled, giving them too much credit.

Makoto pushed her way into another room, which was just as packed as the first and spotted a table that was practically groaning under the amount of food, mostly chips and assorted junk, which was scattered on its top.

Slowly picking her way toward it, she balanced her tray on her arm and cleared a space to set down the cookie platter.

Her pink iced, heart-shaped treats looked more than a little out of place crammed among the overflowing bowls of Pretz, shrimp chips, cheese curls, and other assorted munchies, but Makoto was satisfied. She'd fulfilled her promise to Minako and now she could get something to drink, find Minako and scream at her for a few minutes, and then make an escape and maybe save whatever vestiges of hearing she had left. That idea made her smile. She snatched one of her cookies for the road, shooting a last disdainful glance at the overly salty chips.

In the middle of the table she spotted a punch bowl, surrounded by filled cups. She picked up a glass of screaming red colored fruit punch, only to have her wrist caught and held before she could bring it to her lips. "You ought to watch out for the Red Death punch. It's totally spiked."

Makoto glanced up from the blue plastic cup into a pair of the bluest eyes she'd ever seen, and having spent years around Usagi, Minako and Mamoru, that was saying something. The male face they were set in wasn't bad either, she noted, sinfully handsome and framed by longish, dark chestnut colored waves which were streaked with rich, darker color, like espresso. Not bad at all. Makoto smiled as she noted that, instead of a beer or a handful of chips, he had one of her cookies in his other hand. A mark of good taste in her book. He got immediate bonus points.

"Really?"

He grinned at her which had her heart skipping a beat, and for the first time not because she thought he looked like the sempai who'd left her lovelorn when she was a kid. Sempai was soy mash compared to this guy. And he was still holding her wrist…it wasn't her hand, but it was close. "I'd wager," he said in a slightly husky voice, leaning toward her over the table, "that's got more booze in it than the corner liquor store has in its whole back storage room." The warm rumble of his voice made Makoto's toes curl inside her shoes.

She was about to speak when a blonde girl in a fire engine red mini-dress of almost illegally form-fitting spandex, a Kappa necklace with a fat, pink, heart-shaped stone, and a huge red hair bow swooped in on them. Makoto blinked, mystified, realizing that her friend was also wearing a pair of glittery plastic fairy wings for no particular reason that she could fathom.

"Minako?" she asked dumbly.

"Mako-chan! You came and brought the cookies! Now I can keep my promise."

'Damn!' Makoto braced herself for the moment that was destined to happen, when the fabulous looking guy would see her model-gorgeous friend and forget about her very existence. She was used to it, but for no good reason it seemed like it would hurt more this time…maybe because it was Valentine's Day.

And then something completely unexpected happened.

Minako flashed her patented V sign, declaring in ringing tones, "In the name of Venus, GET LUCKY!" A bracelet of heavy silver snapped shut around Makoto's arm, really actually high on her wrist, just above where the man's hand was. A similar silver ring was summarily locked onto his. Her lunatic friend let out a squeal of delight and plunged back into the crowd, her wings bobbing as she bounced away.

"The heck?!"

Makoto jerked her wrist involuntarily, sloshing punch over the edge of her cup and onto the stained-beyond-all-repair rug. The stranger's wrist followed. Makoto blinked again as she digested the facts.

Her obviously completely deranged friend had handcuffed her to a perfect stranger and then run off to kami only knew where. Therefore:

1.Minako had obviously lost her mind, though it didn't matter because Minako wasn't going to live long enough to be dangerous to another human being…except that

2.She'd already gotten away. Damn!

3.The guy was still really cute and looked as stunned as she did.

4.She, Makoto, wasn't nearly as mad as she ought to be. Probably because of reason number 3.

Makoto proffered a weak apologetic smile. "Eh…what can I say? She's nuts. I'm really sorry about this." She'd studied a lot about etiquette in her coursework, but it had mostly involved which direction to serve and remove plates and how to dine using all twenty forks and such. There hadn't been any part, however, which involved explaining to a hot guy that one's friend had gone insane and the handcuffs had to be said friend's demented idea of party ice-breaker.

Random shrieks and some curses emitting from around the room drew Makoto's attention away from the man she was cuffed to and toward the room at large. It seemed that Minako was not the only Kappa wearing those ludicrous wings and handcuffing random male and female people together. Some happily. Some not. Oh yes, this stunt had Minako written all over it.

"I wonder where they got all the handcuffs," the man said thoughtfully as he bit into her cookie. A slow burn settled in Makoto's cheeks as he licked crumbs off his lips while she watched, transfixed. Evidently he was over his shocked initial reaction, though Makoto still wasn't.

"I AM GOING TO ROAST YOU OVER A SLOW FIRE, AINO MINAKO!"

Makoto jumped, dropping her cup entirely, jerking her partner's arm again. That was unmistakably Rei, her outraged screech coming from the front room and drowning out the thump of the stereo. Evidently she hadn't just seen a look-alike earlier. Which meant that if something wasn't done, the whole party was liable to go down, literally, in flames. Unfortunately Makoto couldn't just run in there and save the world, or in this case the Kappa House, since she had a tagalong linked to her wrist.

"Um…excuse me," Makoto apologized, "but I've really got to see to that." She waved their linked hands in the direction of the other room. "Can you…um…?"

"Oh…right." He looked slightly abashed and, so she could come around, they moved toward the end of the table…in opposite directions. The chain between the cuffs caught them and he laughed. Makoto turned redder than the punch. "Okay," she mumbled, "we'll go your way."

Gingerly she lifted their hands and they picked their way around the perimeter of the table until she could come around to his side.

"It'll be easier to get through," he mused, "if we just hold hands."

"I suppose," Makoto replied, feeling flustered as he opened his hand to take hers. When she slid her hand in his she felt the oddest sensation of warmth. Not in her hand, but all over her. She figured it was lucky that she'd already been blushing. She couldn't possibly get any redder.

There was another shriek of moral outrage which had her wincing. "Gotta go. Come'mon."

"Let me," he said, stepping ahead and parting his way through the crowd. "Which way."

Makoto went up on tiptoe to scan the crowd, taking advantage of her height for once. The problem with living in Tokyo, she mused, was there were too many black haired people and quite a few of them were complaining about the Valentine's Party idea. But only one of them was currently vowing eternal vengeance on their mutual friend while handcuffed to a rather rakish, very Nordic looking man, so that helped narrow the field a good bit. Glancing back at her partner, Makoto noticed with some pleasure that even up on her toes he was still taller than she by more than a few critically important centimeters.

"Over there," she pointed with her free hand. "The one in the plum, err, purple dress cuffed to the blond guy."

Her man grinned as he spotted her friend. "Oh…okay. We're off then."

With Makoto in tow, he plowed through the milling throng, only getting them hung up once on another couple's set of cuffs. When they reached the other pair, Makoto grabbed Rei with her cuffed hand.

"Calm down, Rei-chan."

"Mako, if she doesn't give me the keys to these in the next five seconds," Rei said, shaking her wrist in the air and thereby the blond man's as well, "I am going to visit a whole new world of pain onto Minako."

"I'm not that bad, am I? 'Cause I think you're hot."

That interjection from the blond man had Makoto wincing. Rei opened her mouth to blast him, silenced only because Makoto stuffed her cookie into Rei's mouth. The priestess chewed grimly as Makoto insisted, "Later, Rei-chan."

"So I take it you two know each other then," the blond man said with a grin, flashing Makoto a saucy wink from beneath his somewhat shaggy golden bangs. He stuck out his free hand and pumped hers. "I'm Jude Edward Daito the Third," he chucked at the pomposity of it, "but everyone calls me Jed. And I take it she's Rei," he said, jerking a finger at his partner who muttered something unintelligible around the mouthful of cookie. "And you two are?"

"Um…Makoto. Kino Makoto," she said, looking a little embarrassed at being unable to introduce her male cohort. But they hadn't gotten as far as introductions when she'd heard Rei threatening Minako.

"Neil Sterne," Makoto's chocolate haired companion saved her from acute humiliation. "Pleased to meet you."

"Likewise," the blond man said, thrusting his free hand out for Neil to take and flashing a gleaming toothpaste bright smile which was infectious.

By that point, Rei had finished chewing and swallowing the cookie. She stuck a finger in Makoto's face. "Don't you ever try that again…at least not without the damn cookie." A relieved look spread across Makoto's face. She recognized that tone. She'd been reprieved, and Rei's next words confirmed it. "It's what saved you this time."

"Smooth move," Jed interjected with a second wink at Makoto.

Rei elbowed him sharply, making Neil and Makoto laugh, but Rei refused to look in her partner's direction. "Have you got any more of those cookies on you, Mako-chan? Someone else could use stopping up."

"Sorry. You got the last one." Waggling empty fingertips, Makoto shook her head. "So Mina-chan got you two…um…too?"

Rolling her smoky amethyst eyes, Rei nodded. "Yup. Did you see the wings? She and her little army of Kappas running around like a bunch of crazed cupids."

"Well you don't hear us complaining," Neil said, squeezing Makoto's hand as he glanced over at Jed for confirmation. Makoto blushed while Jed, an impish twinkle in his ice blue eyes, gave Rei a lascivious once over.

"Nope. No complaints here."

"Baka," Rei muttered, her ears going red. "I just hope it doesn't get Minako into trouble."

A slight frown creased Makoto's forehead. "Trouble?"

"You know," Rei said with another eye roll. "Drunk freshman girls. Guys on the make. Handcuffs. It might not be good."

"Oh…that kind of trouble." Makoto flinched and chewed on her lip. Rei had a definite point.

"So how do you know this Minako friend of yours is behind this?" Neil scratched his temple. The girls looked down at their wrists pointedly. Hastily Neil amended his query. "I mean…how do you know she came up with the idea?"

This time both girls rolled their eyes. Rei answered him saying, "You have to know our friend to know that this handcuff thing is Minako-chan all over. She's the self proclaimed Goddess of Looooooove." Deliberately Rei drawled out the vowel.

"Plus," Makoto interjected, "she would do anything to bring people together. But she doesn't always think things through when it comes to romance."

There was a derisive snort from Rei at that. "Try any time."

"Rei. That wasn't even nice." Makoto reproved her friend, who flushed and glanced around to make sure Minako hadn't overheard her verbal potshot. "You know she'll be much more likely to give you the key if you're not screaming at her or insulting her."

"Alright, alright. I take it back." the raven-haired girl groaned, feeling guilty in spite of herself. Makoto's notable distaste for internal discord (the heat of battle and her quick temper notwithstanding) was second only to Ami's, and she had a tendency to guilt everyone to death in an effort to make peace when squabbles broke out among her friends. "Always the peace-maker, aren't you?"

That drew a giggle from Makoto. "Well someone's got to be and Ami's not here right now. Who'd have ever dreamt it all those years ago when I was the 'karate fiend' bully who was rumored to beat people up just for the hell of it?"

Neil stared at her. "You're kidding! Someone said that about you? That's crazy." She was strong, sure, but to his eyes she looked every inch a lady, from her soft auburn curls right down to the hem of the soft pink sweater dress she wore. She looked like the kind of girl he wanted to meet that he could some day take to introduce his parents. It was one of the reasons he'd gone over to meet her in the first place instead of hooking up with some vapid, overly made-up party girl. Well, that and the fact that he'd been hooked by the light sparkling in her vivid green eyes. But she certainly didn't look like a brawler.

Looks so often are deceiving.

Makoto shrugged, though she was mentally kicking herself for opening her big mouth. "You know how rumor mills are," she temporized, "Stories take on a life of their own. One kiss is a proposal of marriage. One slap becomes a brawl." She wondered if her own ears were going red. 'So it was kind of more than a slap…but it was years ago. And the jerk's broken nose healed in time.'

Her reverie was broken by a yell that could lead to only one thing. Trouble. Makoto smirked. It was always good to be headed toward a familiar destination…and now, with Rei, she had backup.


	3. A Question Of Keys

Chapter 3 – A Question Of Keys

"Hand over the keys right now!" The irate refrain came from the front of the room and it was not one voice but many. Makoto and Rei and their partners swiveled their heads in the direction of the soaring cry. It was getting louder, angrier, and more insistent.

"Uh oh," Jed said, stating the obvious. "That doesn't sound good."

"I think Minako's little mixer idea is going down in flames," Rei muttered.

"Well you'd know if anyone would, Pyro."

Rei shot Makoto a quick glare. "Very funny. Let's go check it out. Maybe we can get her to uncuff us."

By this point Makoto wasn't exactly sure she wanted to be uncuffed, but she knew if she even hinted at that, Rei wouldn't hesitate to blast her back to the Silver Millennium. Not to mention that Neil might think she was… well, the kind of girl she wasn't. She didn't want him getting the wrong idea, although he seemed the gentlemanly type. He was still a college guy, though. "I suppose."

The foursome picked their way through dancing couples toward the noise. It had spread out onto the sorority house's veranda. At the far end, up against a railing stood Minako, clutching a large, wide-mouth, clear glass jar full of keys and wearing a smile as bright as her sunshine colored hair.

"We want the keys right now!" roared a large number of decidedly unhappy young women, rattling the chains that bound them. A fair lot of young men whose faces were black studies growled their agreement. The crowd was getting ugly.

"Some bad drunks in this lot," muttered Jed. Rei dragged him along in her wake as she made her way toward Minako and possible freedom. Neil and Makoto, however, got hung up along the way and lost sight of Rei and Jed in the seething mass of bodies.

"Now everybody calm down," Minako chirped as merrily as if she were presiding over a Sunday tea party. "This is just a chance to break the ice and meet new people. Just relax and go with the flow."

"Hand it over or I'll take it by force!" screeched a young woman who looked about ready to rip Minako's golden blonde hair out by the roots. "You…or one of these other maniacs cuffed me to my ex!" The angry woman gave up glaring at Minako for a moment, to turn a fulminating glare on the unfortunate young man chained to her wrist who had the grace to blush.

"Yeah! And I got a nerd!" called one aggrieved voice from the crowd.

'Ouch!' Makoto's heart twinged faintly in pity for whoever that person's partner was.

"I've already got a boyfriend," whined another petulant voice, "and THIS isn't HIM! I swear, if he got cuffed to someone else…"

On and on it went. As if feeding on its own ire, the crowd seemed to grow uglier, pushing on toward Minako with malevolent intent.

Minako frowned, climbing up on the broad porch railing to get up and away from the irate students. "Jeeze…everyone's so touchy. Nobody wants to have fun anymore." Rei managed just then to push forward through the crowd and glared at the nearest agitators, who quailed slightly, slinking back under the fire priestess' fearsome gaze. Having a gained a measure of security, Rei turned her back on the crowd, focusing only on her friend.

"Just give them the keys, Minako-chan," Rei said in a surprisingly gentle tone for her.

"But…"

"Now, Minako-chan. Really. It's for the best."

A slight sly smile flitted across Minako face suddenly. "Okay," she agreed quickly, surprising Rei and Makoto both with her quick agreement. Usually Minako tended to be quite stubborn when it came to her little ploys. The sudden about-face was really unexpected.

"NOW HEAR THIS!" hollered the blonde loudly, garnering everyone's attention. "Everyone can come and get their keys!"

"Finally," muttered a few carrying voices, interrupting the blonde. Rei sighed in relief that Minako was, for once, being sensible.

"You'll just have to find them first," Minako finished as if she hadn't heard the voices at all.

Rei smacked her forehead. She should have known it wouldn't be that easy. Nothing concerning Minako ever was.

Makoto watched in shock as Minako spun nimbly on the railing and hurled the contents of the jar toward the sorority house's darkened lawn. There was one brief glimmering flash as the dozens of tiny silver keys caught the light of the full moon and then they were gone into the night.

There was a sudden massed shriek of outrage and then the stampede of bodies onto the lawn nearly crushed Makoto, who found herself drawn into an embrace against Neil's chest as he tried to shield her.

"You okay?"

"I think so," she murmured, feeling a sweet heat flood through her veins at his touch. 'Wow! More than okay…great!'

"AINO MINAKO, ARE YOU ON CRACK?!" Rei was busy blasting Minako, who was defending her party mixer idea. Jed watched, fascinated as the irate young woman attached to his wrist completely lost her temper. Rei had a lot of temper to lose. Oddly enough, though, he didn't seem put off by it. She was, in his opinion, really gorgeous when she was mad. He divided his attention between the catfight and the lawn brawl. For the masses of unhappy partiers were stampeding around on the grass, grabbing up keys randomly and trying them in the locks, flinging them away in a fury when they didn't work. There was no order to the process and no cooperation. It was pure, undiluted chaos.

"They're never going to get loose that way. It'd be pure chance…dumb luck if they did. They'd be better off calling a locksmith." Makoto heard Neil's voice somewhere near her ear. His breath was warm on the tender skin and ruffled her hair and she completely lost track of what she'd been thinking about.

"I said, don't touch me!" The sound of skin cracking against skin in a slap caught Makoto's attention, unwelcome in the dreamy haze she was in. It caught Rei's attention as well, distracting her just enough that Minako, quick to grab the opportunity, was able to slip away.

"That sounded like…Naru." Makoto was sure of it.

"Leave her alone!" That voice was all too familiar as well.

"Oh crud. Umino too? We'd better go check it out. Usagi'd freak if we let something happen to them."

"So much for the hope that the worst was over," Rei muttered under her breath.

The foursome again trouped across the porch, this time with Makoto in the lead. All the while both girls were wondering not for the first time how it was humanly possible for Naru to get into as much trouble as she did. She even seemed to draw monsters like sugar water draws flies.

This time, though, the menace appeared to be a couple of burly types who looked like they should be tackling people and making touchdowns. Evidently, though, the only touching they were interested in was on the petite redhead. Makoto scowled as she thought she recognized at least one or two from the whole raucous 'rating game' earlier in the evening. They reeked of beer and hormones.

"Come on, cutie," one of the Neanderthals slurred, reaching out for a frightened looking Naru who cringed back into Umino's embrace. "Dump the dweeb and let's party."

"Leave me alone!" she pleaded, tears welling up in her eyes. Behind his oversized and double-thick glasses it was hard to tell what Umino was thinking, but he seemed scared as well. He was also sporting a rapidly purpling bruise on his forearm. Given his penchant for going to Naru's defense, even in the face of overwhelming odds, it wasn't hard to figure out what might have happened. But at least he wasn't throwing spicy fried shrimp this time.

"I think," Makoto announced loudly, fisting one hand and propping it against her waist pugnaciously, "that you'd all better clear off. She's clearly not interested in the likes of you."

One of the slightly less bombed aggressors swung to face her. "Oh yeah...says who?"

"Me," Makoto informed him with a defiant toss of her hair and a stormy look that, if they'd been sober, might have realized meant they were in serious trouble.

"Hey guys...it's the chick with the big boobs!" The obnoxious fellow elbowed his drunken buddy who turned and gave Makoto a quick, lopsided leer. He did not, however, leave off pawing at Naru who cried out loudly and slapped his hands away.

Naru, though, looked suddenly hopeful of rescue as she realized that others had arrived.

"I said, let her go." Makoto's voice was turning steely. "In fact…just leave altogether. I know party crashers when I see them. Get lost!"

"No way," said the first man, "unless you want to take her place." He gave her an appraising once over that had her grinding her back teeth. "It could work," he said, ogling her chest, making her skin crawl and her temper kindle. The creep had no idea how close he came to death by electrocution in that moment. Makoto could feel the rage crackle through her veins, sparking her power.

Unexpectedly, though, Makoto heard a feral-sounding growl from behind her. Neil had come up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder like a man staking a claim. He was shooting the big mouth a murderous glare. His blue eyes had darkened almost to black and glittered dangerously. "Oh no. I don't think so."

Makoto felt rather than heard Rei and Jed's approach as well. They too were glaring daggers at Naru and Umino's assailants.

Drunk though they were, the football players were capable of realizing that the two men were likely to be tough opponents and the dark haired one appeared quite protective of the busty girl in pink who was, in turn, quite protective of the tiny redhead. However, they were also drunk enough that they weren't capable of keeping their mouths shut or understanding that the best course would have been to withdraw.

"Make us."

Perfect auburn brows snapped together as Makoto scowled fiercely, ready to hand the cretin his teeth. "With pleasure, pig."

Without additional warning she seized one man's arm in her strong grip, did something quick, efficient and brutal with her feet and the next moment found him on the ground, moaning. Jed gawked openly at the display of physical prowess from Makoto, who cracked her knuckles in preparation for what was to come.

Had he not been so surprised at her actions, Neil would have cracked an exceptionally wide smile just then. She was still a lady he'd like to get to know better…but she clearly had more than a passing knowledge of the martial arts as well. That was one of the coolest things he'd learned about any woman ever. 'Tough and kind and pretty. Damn!'

The drunkard's pals glared at her. "You hurt Daisuke, you bitch!" spat one, lunging at her.

"So?!"

A quick one-two punch to the gut and he too joined the first man on the floor. Makoto dusted off her knuckles and examined her manicure. Neil stepped forward, placing his shoe on the man's neck with a certain air of light menace. "That's no way to talk to ladies."

The second man gagged slightly at the pressure on his windpipe and lay very, very still.

"Some…lady," sneered the first man unwisely from his prone position.

"Cretin! Slime!" Rei responded by kicking him in the ribs with the very pointy toe of one of her heels. She grinned evilly as she felt a give that spelled a broken bone. By this point Jed had come out of his shock. When a third man tried coming after Rei, he neatly intercepted the threat and neutralized it handily using a form of martial arts that Makoto had never seen before but was highly intrigued by.

"Anyone else," Makoto invited in a dangerously cheery tone, beckoning with one pink-tipped finger, though she maintained her battle stance.

Nobody else, drunk or sober, seemed willing to take on the pissed-off brunette and her protective partner. Or the mean black-haired vixen and the big blond man either. The remaining hoodlums grabbed their downed companions and left in a hurry.

Naru slumped down on the floor as her shaky knees finally gave way and she burst into tears. Heaving a tremendous sigh of relief, Umino bent over her, helping her back to her feet. He shot both Makoto and Rei a look of gratitude…or at least they thought it was gratitude. Again, the glasses obscured his true expression.

"Thank you," he breathed, wiping his brow.

Rei patted his arm. "Don't thank us, Umino-kun. We'd do the same any time. Usagi'd never forgive us if we let Naru get hurt. Just get her out of here. Go someplace...any place but here. And watch out for those yahoos. They're a nasty, if cowardly, bunch."

He nodded vigorously and gathered his traumatized girlfriend into his embrace, shepherding toward the door. "Come on, Naru-chan. Let's go. I'll walk you back to your house."

"Well," Neil said, running a hand through his dark hair, rumpling it even more than the abortive fight had, "that was an interesting bit of entertainment."

"Special for parties," Makoto quipped, tucking back a stray lock of her own hair. Neil's eyes followed the motion of her hand. He couldn't help wondering if the curls were as soft as they looked. Having seen her in action, though, he decided to hold off, at least for the moment, on finding out. Maybe later, though…

Jed gave Rei's hand a quick fond squeeze that made her smoky eyes widen in shock. "You two were great! Girls who are beautiful and can kick serious ass! Is there anything better?" He grinned devilishly and shoved his free hand in his pocket, jingling his keys expectantly. "So…what do you ladies want to do next?"

Violet fire blazed up in Rei's eyes and she glowered at Jed, who ought to have withered under the onslaught. "Well, you can start by letting go of my hand unless you want to wind up like Makoto's sparring dummies who just left."

In spite of her temper, or perhaps because of it, Jed thought that Rei had never looked lovelier even while she was giving him her special patented Look of Death. It might just be worth getting his ass kicked to keep holding her. Maybe.

The look intensified and he felt himself begin to sweat.

Maybe not.

Before he'd made up his mind one way or the other the wail of a police siren became audible, even over the screaming stereo. And it was rapidly getting closer.

"Oh hell." Neil resorted to cursing in extreme frustration. "The party is over."

"I vote we get the heck out of here before we all wind up in the pokey," Makoto opined. "Hands?" She and Neil both raised their joined hands together without thinking. Rei and Jed were not far behind with their vote, though she still glared at the blond man as if the arrival of the police was his fault.


	4. Crowning Humiliation

Chapter 4 – Crowning Humiliation

It had involved going out through a side window and sneaking away through some very prickly bushes, but they'd managed to escape the party zone and avoid the authorities, who were occupied trying to sort out the situation with the missing handcuff keys. Rei grimly considered that it might almost have been worth getting arrested if she could have embarrassed her bastard of a father, who was on another one of hypocritical 'family is what keeps the country together' kicks for re-election. She could see the scandal sheets now. 'Conservative politician's daughter arrested playing kinky games with gaijin.' Her father would have had kittens and Kaidou-san…

Makoto, on the other hand, was simply grateful to have gotten away relatively unmolested and pleased that Umino had not suffered death by linebacker.

Neil had seemed a little embarrassed at being out in public with their cuffs and had tried to gently broach the subject, expressing concern about what other people might think seeing them cuffed together. Makoto simply rolled her eyes and chuckled. A group of handcuffed young people wouldn't cause a stir unless they danced through the street naked to the sounds of a brass band. In fact, with everything that the denizens of Tokyo had seen over the years they simply tended to blow off anything they didn't want to see…and that included eight foot tall purple scaly monsters, be they cardians, droids, daimons, phages and any other name the monsters called themselves…most currently wraiths, unless said monsters were actually throttling or draining them of their energy at the time.

Still, she found Neil's old-fashioned concerns for their reputations quite endearing. He was sweet and seemed to have a quiet personality, which suited her just fine. She didn't mind silence much, probably due to living alone for so long. Quiet that would have driven Minako round the bend fit her like a glove. As for Jed, she didn't figure that he'd be embarrassed by much of anything. He defined the concept of brash, wrapping it up in a good looking blond package. She much preferred the quieter Neil, though, to Jed's somewhat overbearing boisterousness.

Rei, on the other hand…

"Do we know anyone who can get these off of us?" she demanded, breaking out of dismal thoughts of her father and his assistant.

Neil considered the question. "I know someone who might be able to help. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try."

Reaching to his belt, he plucked free the cell phone clipped there and punched in a number. Seconds crept by and it became clear that whoever he was calling was not either picking up or had their phone turned off entirely. He left a message instead, requesting his friend call him back ASAP.

"Well, now what?"

"I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat," Jed suggested breezily. "Anybody know someplace good around here that's open at this hour?"

Rei and Makoto exchanged looks. There was only one place, of course.

Ten minutes later they were entering the Crown Fruit Parlor, trying to look casual. They quickly seated themselves at their usual table. Furuhata Unazuki, who had heard the bell ring as they entered, hurried over with menus since the girls had newcomers with them who probably couldn't recite the entire menu forwards and backwards. That in and of itself was rare, since the girls usually were only in together, occasionally with Mamoru. And they were never there at such late hours. She practically dislocated her jaw, however, dropping it when she spotted the silver rings connecting the men and the women.

"Oh my gawd… kinky!"

"Unazuki. Don't start."

The pert little red-headed waitress laughed out loud, laughed until she sagged weakly against the booth for support while she wheezed and gasped for air. "Do you two…have any…idea how much…my innocent-seeming…yet ecchi brother would…love a picture…of this?"

Slowly she regained her composure, though she looked like she was about to begin laughing again at any second. "Jeeze…I think he dreams at night about stuff like this when he's not dreaming about Reika and Sailor Senshi in micro-fuku."

Jed laughed out loud as Neil's, Mako's and Rei's faces went scarlet and they hid behind their menus. "No such luck. It's just a…um…college prank gone wonky. We're just waiting on a friend of his to get these off." He glanced at the menu briefly. "I'll have an extra-large melon cream soda and some of the house special buns and…"

Neil felt his gorge rise a bit at the combination, but he realized there was a more pressing concern. He never got a chance to mention it, though, as Rei snapped out, "You might want to go easy on the food and drink, baka, until we're out of these cuffs. Because I am not going to go…" Her cheeks pinkened slightly. "Well, just lay off the heavy liquids."

She flicked a quick, pointedly bland glance over at Unazuki, not quite meeting the other girl's gaze. "Small tea please."

"Make it two," Makoto mumbled, trying not to laugh because she knew it would set Unazuki off again. When Neil declined anything, Unazuki bolted through the kitchen doors. The muffled sound of uncontrolled laughter was politely ignored by everyone at the table while an uncomfortable silence reigned. A few minutes later, her face red but sober, Unazuki returned with their orders which she passed around and left them to their own devices.

"So…"

"So…"

Silence had its way for another long moment until Jed, who couldn't take it any more, shot the paper straw wrapper at Rei, who let out a squawk as it bounced off her cheekbone. "That is so juvenile!" she spluttered.

"Well, we're all young. If we can't be juvenile now, then when?" And he tossed a napkin at her with a laugh.

His antics broke the ice, although Rei remained a little bit stiff until he offered her first choice of the fresh buns and asked everyone to tell him about themselves. They chatted easily for at least an hour or so, lingering over their drinks and cheerfully trashing their least favorite professors and discussing their classes.

Makoto explained that she was in the Culinary Arts program, wowing the others with blood-chilling tales of knife skills classes gone spectacularly and gruesomely bad. Rei explained how she was studying religion and music, the two divergent paths astounding the men. Jed volunteered that was studying business marketing and languages with an eye toward going into Pacific Rim trade. He was an exchange student from America. Neil offered up the tidbit that he too was an exchange student, there to study astrophysics. Makoto was so impressed she choked on her tea. Astrophysics. He was SMART!

"So you're an exchange student…from where?" she managed once she stopped aspirating tea and coughing so hard.

"Yes," he replied as Rei pounded her on the back lightly. "From Canada…"

"Your Japanese…is pretty good."

"Not as good as yours," Neil said conversationally. "So where are you from?"

Makoto stared at him, then blinked once. "Um…I'm Japanese."

It was Neil's turn to blink as he ran his gaze over her searchingly. "Seriously?"

She sighed, knowing what he was seeing. A peaches and cream complexion (heavy on the cream), coppery red-brown curls and a height that was taller than many Japanese men. She looked about as stereotypically Japanese as leprechauns but a hell of a lot larger.

"I was born here, but I'm told I resemble distant relatives," she answered a bit testily. That was surely the truth, as far as it went, she thought. Reincarnation, 625,000,000 kilometers and approximately a thousand years were definitely distant.

He flushed slightly as he registered her somewhat frosty tone. "I'm very sorry if I offended you, Makoto-san. Truly. I did not mean to be rude." Neil decided to fall back on his mother's rule that if you're not sure if you've offended someone, apologize anyway. It couldn't hurt and it usually helped.

The sincerity in his tone shamed her. "I'm sorry," she muttered, shredding her napkin into tiny pieces. "It's just that I'm a little sensitive about that. I don't, you know, blend well. I'm too tall."

He brushed his fingers over hers and gazed down into her verdant eyes intently. "You look just fine from where I'm sitting."

'Oh he's good…' Rei noted a familiar starry-eyed quality to Makoto and behind her cup she smiled knowingly.

"You said you were in Culinary Arts. Did you make those cookies earlier?" Neil grinned as she nodded. "They were terrific, and I say that coming from a background where there was but one cookie, the almighty chocolate chip. My dad might even change his mind about that, though, if he tasted some like yours."

'Oh he's REALLY good…' Makoto ducked her head, fiddling with her cup, as a pleased blush colored her cheeks. A lovely, fluttering warmth that had nothing to do with tea was building in her stomach and it was wonderful. Neil, realizing he was making headway, moved on heedlessly. And as always happens at such moments, he promptly stuck his foot in it.

"Your folks must really be proud of you."

The abrupt pallor that leeched the color from Makoto's face alarmed Neil, as did her suddenly somewhat broody smile. "I like to think so." She stirred her tea, momentarily lost in thought.

'Uh oh…said something wrong here. BIG TIME!' He looked desperately at Rei, who quickly scrawled something on a napkin and pushed it into Neil's hand below the table. When he read it, he swallowed hard, crumpling the napkin in a ball and stuffing it into his pants pocket. Jed arched an eyebrow, but said nothing, as Rei pinched him when he opened his mouth. He winked, letting her know he'd gotten her unspoken message. Some subject changing was definitely in order.

"So," he asked in a conversational tone, as if inquiring about the weather. "What's the deal with all the monster and sailor senshi sightings? You guys are local, so please do explain. It's some of the weirdest stuff I've ever heard of, but everyone around here acts like it's no big deal."

Rei wasn't sure whether to be relieved that the conversation had moved away from Mako's deceased parents, a subject which always depressed the younger woman, or appalled that it had moved onto senshi. Still, she could have kissed him, almost, for making a topic change of any kind.

"Well, basically it isn't a big deal," she answered, trying to sound flippant. "Nobody really pays attention unless they're the one being attacked because it's so common and they figure the senshi will take care of the problem."

Neil squeezed Makoto's hand, pleased to see some color starting to seep back into her face. "What monsters?" he asked, truly curious, "And what's a sailor senshi?" It was a phrase he hadn't picked up in his language studies over the years.

"Oh man, you've gotta get out of the observatory more!"

Jed helpfully began spilling all the knowledge he'd gleaned on the subject since he'd arrived in Japan. "They're soldiers. But not like in camouflage or with guns. People say they're these gorgeous women who wear these strange outfits…sort of a combination of a sailor fuku and a cheerleader's mini skirt, I guess, and heels. They supposedly go around fighting all kinds of monsters using magic elemental powers like fire and lightning and water and such. There's supposed to be one for each planet, except Earth, oddly enough, and the Moon. But according to the guy in my dorm, who fancies himself as the senshi fan to end all senshi fans, he says that the ones for Uranus, Neptune, Saturn and Pluto all just disappeared a while back. He said only Mercury, Venus, Mars, Moon and Jupiter have been seen recently."

Makoto quickly took a sip of her tea, risking having it go down the wrong pipe again, taking refuge in the action as she tried to figure out what to say. Jed's facts were correct, as far as it went.

Michiru and Haruka had taken Hotaru off for a much-needed vacation after defeating their latest enemy while they tried to figure out how to handle her rapidly changing body, which was aging abruptly. Meanwhile, the ever dutiful but enigmatic Setsuna had resumed her duties at Gates of Time, warning them they'd have some clean up to handle ("with some help from the Earth in the end," she'd said) for a while. The Inner Senshi had been doing just that ever since. It had been a rare occasion for them that they'd managed to do away with the enemy directly and quickly, but had to mop up after him. For it was as if the boss had seeded Tokyo with wraith generators and they kept popping up, at least two a week for the last six months. Usually, however, they were nothing the Inners couldn't handle working together…though things had gotten a little sticky around midterm exams. Fortunately midterms were now over and the wraith tide had seemingly been ebbing as well.

Evidently Jed's dorm-mate was pretty good at the research he did on the senshi. Rei was biting her lip anxiously. She nearly drew blood when she heard Jed say, "The guy from my dorm says the one in red, from Mars, is totally hot, and, no pun intended, she shoots fire arrows. How cool is that?"

Neil looked truly intrigued. "Is this true? Really? Or is it one of those a friend of a friend knows this guy who knew a kid who knew someone who saw them after having a few too many type of things."

"It's true," Unazuki piped up, startling Makoto and Rei as she dropped their check on the table. "The senshi are absolutely real. I should know. They've rescued me more than once."

She puffed out her chest proudly, while Rei and Makoto groaned low in their throats, completely mortified. Especially Makoto, who'd come within a hairsbreadth of being seriously smooched by Unazuki when she'd had her pure heart stolen. It was not one of her favorite memories. Evidently Unazuki had forgotten that part, though, and was enjoying her fifteen minutes of fame in the eyes of Jed and Neil. "They're heroines!"

That got Jed's attention. "That's so cool that you actually saw them. So what do they look like? Everyone says they're gorgeous, but nobody ever gets a picture. You'd think someone would get a picture in a world that's filled with cameras."

"They're really pretty, I guess," Unazuki said, tapping her finger against her jaw thoughtfully. "Though there's a kind of glow around them that's really bright so it's hard to see details exactly. It's kind of hard to explain, but that's probably what mucks up the photos, since there are lots of people who've tried to photograph them. Or maybe it's magic. I don't know. I _can_ tell you that they each look different, though. Two are blonde and one's kind of reddish-brunette and one's…"

Makoto's green eyes shot wide open in sudden alarm. They did not need this. If Unazuki were to put two and two together…or in their case, five, she might actually figure out the identities of the Sailor Senshi. And she was enough of a walking target as it was. Unazuki was very nearly as bad a draw for the enemy as Naru. Everyone who came to town tried to get her, it seemed, necessitating senshi intervention.

"Unazuki," Rei, interrupted, slapping down a couple of bills in what amounted to payment of their check and a VERY large tip. "Why don't you take this? We ought to be going so you can close up. It's getting kind of late."

Through long association Rei knew that Unazuki wouldn't take offense at the action, though the girl did look a bit surprised. However, she was distracted by Rei's comment about the time and glanced down at her watch, shaking her head when she realized the younger woman had a point.

"Oh. You're right." Unazuki stepped back so that the couples could wriggle out of the booth. "It's already five minutes past closing time anyway. And if I'm too late, Motoki will have my head. He still acts like I'm a junior high kid, sometimes. Good night then," she murmured, bustling off to get a tray to clear off their table.

Makoto frowned, first at her cup, then at Rei. "Why'd you pay for everything? At least let me pay for my tea."

An airy hand wave from Rei blew off Makoto's offer. "No way. I know your funds are tight, whereas my father, the pompous ass, just tried to bribe me playing dutiful daughter and posing for another pretty political photo op. So I've got some spending money right now. Don't worry about it." She paused and winked at Makoto, who looked like she was working up to another objection. "Look, I know you like to pay your own way, but fight me on this out of false pride, and I'll do worse. I'll have Minako drag you shopping tomorrow and buy you a whole new outfit ON ME."

"Okay. Jeeze…manipulative much?" Makoto crumpled up her napkin, tossing it at Rei.

"Somebody's got to keep an eye on you, my tough friend. None of us is an island."

Makoto coughed and then an impish twinkle danced in her eyes. "Just remember that some day in the future, oh butter-inner. Turnabout is fair play, you know."

Neil was busy re-calling his friend, but to no avail. He looked up apologetically. "I don't know what to say. He's usually really good about returning calls. Maybe his battery died." He hesitated for a moment. "So is there some place we can go? I mean, I think at this point a locksmith's our only hope, but we'll never get one at this hour."

"We can't go to my place," Makoto shook her head vigorously. "I'm in the girls' dorm. As it is, I'll probably catch heck from Chryso-san, the RA, for not telling her I'd be gone." She pulled a face, thinking of the annoying cat-eyed woman, known as Beryl the Bitch by most of the freshman, who seemed to enjoy making their lives hell for her own kicks. An idea dawned, though, and she swiveled her head around to catch Rei's eye.

"How about the temple, Rei-chan? There's room since Yuichiro-kun left to visit his family and I know you've got extra futons. Your Ojiisan won't get too mad if we show up this late. At worst he'll grumble a bit and then start teasing us."

"Well…Yuichiro's actually due back tomorrow, but since it's just for one night, it will be alright, and I guess there's really no other choice," Rei agreed. "With any luck 'Jii-chan'll remain asleep anyway. Follow us, boys. Next stop, the Hikawa Jinja, the oldest Shinto shrine in Tokyo and, luckily for us, my home and soon to be your crash pad."


	5. By The Dark Of The Temple

Chapter 5 – By The Dark Of The Temple

"Watch your step," Rei warned, as they climbed myriad stone steps toward the temple complex. "It's pretty steep and there aren't handrails."

"I think this place has more steps each time I come here these days," Makoto grumbled, refraining from mentioning the dim lighting which made the steps treacherous going.

Rei chortled behind her hand. "You're getting weak and flabby in that case, Mako-chan. You used to take these stairs like they were nothing. Maybe you need to step up your time in the dojo and taste less of your fabulous cuisine."

"Oh ha ha," Makoto growled, taking a gentle swat at Rei as she jogged lightly up the steps. "Probably, but my instructors keep saying we have taste test everything for quality control."

"I think they're…mocking us," Jed took a deep breath, trying to keep up with Rei's faster, experienced stride.

Neil, who tended to spend his free time in the gym wasn't breathing hard, but he was feeling the strain in his calves. "I think you could be right."

The entire group slowed down as they reached a section of the staircase where the dim lights gave way entirely to blackness. The tiny lantern that was supposed to illuminate that portion of the staircase had obviously suffered a burnt out bulb. "Oh drat," Rei muttered, "I'll have to get a flashlight and light bulb and change that out pronto. Otherwise it's a liability thing. The temple couldn't afford to get sued."

A soft moan issued from Jed as he realized that meant that he'd be climbing the temple steps not once but twice. Neil chuckled softly, while Makoto hid a smile behind her hand.

They crested the hill to the temple complex where both men's eyes widened. The shrine was always an impressive sight and being in shadow and moonlight only seemed to add to its mysterious impact. Once they'd looked their fill and she'd answered the standard Twenty Questions on how she lived there, yes her 'Jii-chan was a priest, yes she was a miko, explained what a kami was, etcetera, Rei got down to the business of business. That light still needed changing.

"Have fun," Neil said with a slight smirk as Rei dragged Jed off to find the supplies she was going to need. Jed's only response was a one-finger salute that made Neil's smirk even wider.

Phobos and Deimos, perched atop a Torii gate, screamed, drawing Makoto's attention. "That's odd," she mused, wondering why Rei's birds weren't asleep. She shrugged it off after a moment's thought. She'd never understood birds anyway.

After Neil made one last unsuccessful phone call to his friend, this time leaving a message to come directly to the Hikawa Jinja, Makoto led Neil back over to the steps and they sat down to chat. The view of Tokyo's skyline as seen from Sendai Hill was spectacular at night, yet it was also high enough up that you could see the stars without too much light interference. That impressed Neil more than the city lights view.

Without either of them being consciously aware of what they were doing, he put his arm around Makoto's shoulders and began pointing out the various constellations visible in the February sky. Makoto leaned against his shoulder, trying to keep her head close to his so she could figure out what it was he was looking at. Because it seemed to her like he could definitely see things in the night sky that she could not. It didn't bother her, though. She was just enjoying the warmth and quiet closeness and the sandalwood scent of his cologne. Together, they were content.

Rei and Jed slipped past them and headed back down toward the black hole which indicated the burnt-out light. One of the crows (Phobos? Or was it Deimos? Only Rei could tell) squawked again and flitted off after her mistress and Jed. They disappeared into the night, leaving only the faint murmur of their conversation to waft upward to where Makoto and Neil sat. The remaining crow fixed a beady eye on them, but remained still.

A flicker of light caught Neil's eye and he pointed out into the glittering velvet night. "Look! A falling star."

Makoto jerked her head off his shoulder to look, only to yelp in minor pain and set her head right back down. Her earring had somehow become snagged on his sweater and nearly getting it ripped out of her earlobe had hurt. Trying to get it unhooked, while hampered by the handcuffs wasn't exactly easy either. "Maybe it'll work better if we take it off me and then get it un-snagged."

"Let me get it," he offered. A bit awkwardly, Makoto unfastened the backing and carefully pulled back her head, letting the earring's post pull out. She gave a sigh of relief as she was able to bring her head back up once again. Neil then removed the tiny, rose-shaped piece of jewelry from his clothing.

He froze, however, when his hand closed fully over the delicate piece. A jolt of strange heat rolled through him that seemed to radiate from the earring itself.

"What's this made of?" he asked, eyeing the thing warily, rubbing his finger back and forth over the tiny green leaves at the edge of the pink gemstone rose. It was the leaves that called him. The rose was warm, but the leaves felt positively hot to his touch.

Well this was weird. Makoto couldn't understand why he should care, but she answered anyway. "They were a gift from my parents. They're carved jade."

'Jadeite' The word whispered through his brain, insubstantial as an echo, and then it was gone.

"I never knew jade was so dark," Neil murmured, sounding more than a little out of it as he continued holding the object and fingering the leaves like they were a talisman.

Makoto looked perplexed, not understanding his interest. "Well…there are two kinds of jade. You've probably seen jadeite. That's usually paler and comes in a wide range of colors, including pink. The rose is carved of that and it's the most common type for jewelry. But the leaves are the other kind, I think." She furrowed her brow, trying to recall the name of the stone from her high school geo-sci course. It had escaped her.

"Nephrite," Neil whispered softly, seemingly lost in his own world. He didn't even realize he'd spoken aloud. A quick sizzle of strange energy seemed to pulse from the top of his brain to the soles of his feet like lightning and just as quickly come and gone. The crow on the Torii gate screamed loudly.

'What the hell was that?!'

The bell went off as he spoke and Makoto grinned. "That's right. I think the leaves are made out of nephrite which is why they're such a dark olive green like the leaves on a real rose."

She nudged him with her elbow. "Um…could I get my earring back? Please?"

Just then another star fell and Makoto shut her eyes for a moment, childishly wishing on it that Neil would kiss her under the stars.

The tiny twinkle seemed to jolt Neil out of his strange stupor. He blushed, grateful that the dim light hid his embarrassment as he held out the earring toward her outstretched palm. Caught up in her wish, Makoto didn't close her hand fast enough and the tiny piece of jewelry slid from her palm and bounced down the stairs, clicking faintly as it disappeared into the night.

Neil stared in abject horror. He'd lost her earring, a legacy from her dead parents. This was beyond bad. This was a disaster. 'Oh crap!'

Her mouth dropped open in shock and her eyes widened like a doe's in the path of onrushing headlights, the pupils dilating. "My earring," she whimpered. "My earring."

'Oh crapcrapcrapcrapcrap!' Neil bit his lip. "Don't worry," he assured her. "We'll find it."

Makoto seemed to have dropped into the state of insensibility that had numbed Neil for a while. She simply couldn't comprehend that one of her earrings, the only pieces of jewelry that she always, ALWAYS wore and which were the last things she had ever gotten from her parents, was now gone. It was inconceivable.

"Um…Rei," Neil called out, deciding that what he needed was a search and retrieval team. Fast. "We've got a problem. I kind of dropped one of Makoto's earrings and it rolled away down the steps. Makoto-chan's pretty upset, I think. Do you see it anywhere? You've got a flashlight. Can you find it? Please?" He felt like wringing his hands and added mentally, 'before she decides that I'm evil for doing that to her and she writes me off completely.'

"Mako-chan's earring? The rose one?" Rei's voice drifted back up to Neil from the shadows, seeking clarification.

"Yes," he called back. Makoto looked completely stricken, he thought, as he risked a glance at her wide-eyed face. If she'd looked pale before when he'd accidentally mentioned her parents, this time she was positively ashen.

"Oh damn," Neil heard Rei swear. He also heard a sound like the tinkle of breaking glass.

Oh damn was right. He was in deep, deep shit.

In the dark farther down the hill, Rei swore under her breath again. She had a pretty good idea of what Neil was probably facing up there and it would be messy. She snapped on the flashlight and began searching industriously. "Help me look," she demanded imperiously of Jed, heedless of the shards from the broken burnt-out light bulb she'd dropped on hearing Neil's news. "We've got to find Mako's earring. It's a little rose shaped earring of pink and green jade. Watch your feet, though. I don't want it broken."

"What's the big deal about a single earring?" Jed asked, truly puzzled, though he obediently began scanning the ground. "Can't she just get a new pair tomorrow?"

"You don't understand," Rei replied, running the beam of light over each step in turn and searching feverishly.

"Mako-chan's parents went on a major overseas trip when she was just a kid and left her with some friends of theirs so they wouldn't have to pull her out of school. But on the first leg of their return flight, the plane crashed. Everyone was killed and Makoto was orphaned. A few days after their memorial service, a package arrived by airmail. Makoto's parents had bought her a present and mailed it to her before they left for home. It was those jade rose earrings. They were the last things her parents ever gave her and she's probably really messed up at the prospect of having lost one."

She paused for a moment, swiping her tangle of ebony hair back from her face since it was interfering with her search. She then continued, "So to answer your question, NO, she cannot just get a new pair. And she's not going to need to either. Look hard, dammit! We are going to find that earring if we have to search all night long."

"I'm looking. I'm looking."

A surge of feeling that was almost akin to pride went through Jed at that moment as he witnessed Rei's fierce loyalty to her friend. His father had once said that true friendship, the lasting kind, was stronger and more precious than diamonds and considerably rarer. Other than family Jed himself had never met another person he'd felt that way about, though he'd always wanted to. Seeing how Rei felt that kind of connection with her friend, Jed felt a sudden longing to have her have that passionately fierce and loyal tie with him.

They searched for what was, to Neil's way of thinking, the longest ten or fifteen minutes on the planet. In fact, he'd have personally sworn that time itself had frozen. But the gods must have been smiling on them because, despite the darkness and shadows and the probably infinite number of places it could have bounced away to hide in, Jed practically stumbled over the delicate piece of jewelry.

It had rolled off the edge of the rough granite step and lay just beyond it in the dirt, its pale pink color catching his eye at the outside edge of the flashlight's beam. "I found it!" he called out, reaching down to pick it up. He let out a stifled yell of shock and nearly dropped it again when the thing seemed to burn his palm.

'Jadeite.' The sound of the word was like a flash fire that rolled down his spine and crashed across his entire nervous system. He couldn't even move for a moment. Phobos dove for him, the irate bird leaving off only when Rei yelled out a sharp warning sound and waved it off.

"Jed?" Rei leaned over and pried the thing from his hand, letting out a cry of delight and pumping her fist in triumph. "You did it! You found it!" She looped her free arm around his shoulder and hugged him, doing a victory dance. "You did it."

When the burst of fire cleared his brain, Jed blinked like someone coming out of a long sleep and smiled the biggest smile his facial muscles were capable of. He was basically grinning like an idiot because Rei was hugging him…at least, as best she could given their cuffed wrists and pressing nearly every delectable bit of her soft frame against his hard one. There was something to be said for being a knight errant that could come through for a lady.

"My pleasure," he said softly, squeezing Rei. She flushed and stood there for a long moment, gazing into his crystal blue eyes before she pulled back and looked away.

"We found it!" she yelled up to Neil, willing the urgent pounding of her heart to stop.

'Oh thank god!' Patting at Makoto's cheek lightly with his hand, Neil attempted to bring her back around. "Hey…it's okay. They found it, alright? Can you hear me, honey? They found your earring and you're going to get it back. It's not lost anymore."

She blinked, and her eyes slowly regained their focus. "Really?" It was the voice of a child seeking confirmation that there really were not monsters under the bed and that her lost security blanket had been found, Neil thought. His heart bled for what had obviously been a staggering loss to her. He wished he could take away all the hurt and protect her from ever being injured like that again.

"Honest," he said brushing a quick comforting kiss across her cheek.

The kiss worked far better than his earlier patting to bring Makoto around. A surge of giddy delight rolled through her and before Neil realized what was happening, she was kissing him full on the mouth and rocking his world. And her own.

Completely lost in the wonder of their sudden passionate embrace, Neil and Makoto never heard the footsteps as Rei and Jadeite crested the hill top, Phobos perched on Rei's shoulder in between herself and Jed. Makoto and Neil never heard the uneasy shuffling of feet or the throat clearing. And it was only the screaming of both birds that brought them back from their own little world. They jerked apart like they'd touched pure flame. Both of them had their hair and clothes seriously mussed and with their lips sweetly bruised and bee-stung.

Rei kindly and discreetly chose to look away, though she was secretly amazed, having never in her life seen Makoto act so…wanton. Jed, on the other hand, was grinning crazily again, a very bad sign. Just in the split second that he opened his mouth to speak, which probably would have completely mortified the two brunettes, Rei contacted him on his ankle.

"Ow!" he barked in agony. "What the hell, Rei?" He shot her a quick glare that she pointedly ignored, busying herself with giving Makoto back her earring. The crimson-faced young woman replaced the precious earring and quickly pushed the backing tightly into place, feeling like a cape of protection, warm and comforting, had been draped around her shoulders. Jed, on the other hand was feeling unnerved as he was left face to face with a crow that seemed, at least to him, to have an evil look on its feathery face. It really didn't like him. But that was ridiculous, wasn't it? He had to be imagining it.

Not quite meeting Neil's gaze and looking anywhere but at Jed, Makoto whispered her thanks. The soft but intent tone of her voice was more than ample proof to Jed that Rei had been right. There was no question that it had needed to be _that_ particular earring to the exclusion of any other. He was grateful he'd gotten the chance to help.

The hush of her voice also allowed each of them to hear each and every note of the agonized scream which rang out from the sidewalk far below. The two crows squawked one final time and took flight, disappearing into the darkness.

(Author's Note: This is AU in the sense that for this fic's purposes, the first season/second coming of the DK did not happen.)


	6. Duty Calls

Chapter 6 – Duty Calls

Rei and Makoto instantly tensed, hearing the panicked cry. It could, of course, be anything. A mugger, perhaps, or a rapist even, but deep down in their heart of hearts they knew it wasn't. And whatever it was, it was their duty as senshi and the protectors of the planet to go save whoever the poor unfortunate was with the strong vocal cords and the operatic range.

'Why is it always around MY temple?!' Rei could feel the anger growing in the pit of her stomach, a burning hot little ball.

'Why is it NOW?!' A hint of a pout twisted Makoto's lips. None of their enemies had ever been particularly concerned with scheduling their attacks at senshi convenient times, but this particular wraith had really, REALLY lousy timing.

"We've got to check this out," Rei said, tugging Jed's arm as she turned to hurry down the stairs.

"What?!" he demanded, dragging his feet. "Are you insane, Hino-san?! For all you know it could be a rape or a robbery or a Yakuza hit going on down there. We'll call the cops and then go in the temple and lock the doors."

He made a quick and ultimately unproductive swipe for Neil's cell phone, intent on carrying out his will.

"Liability," was the only answer Rei could think of that didn't involve spilling her actual secret. Before Jed could process her answer, she'd hauled him off, exercising a strength he couldn't believe she possessed.

"Well we can't let them go alone," Makoto blurted out, deciding that Rei had the right idea. Neil accidentally dropped his phone as Makoto towed him along in her wake as she sped down the stairs. "Hurry!"

The trip down the stairs went a lot faster than up, the girls skipping every third or fourth step as they went. The guys were simply trying to keep up…and not fall so they would plummet to their deaths on the stones below. It was only when they reached the bottommost section that the four of them came to a halt, peering through the shrubs.

That was the moment when Jed and Neil came face to face with the fact that Tokyo really was a whole world away from anything they'd ever experienced before. To put it bluntly, they were gobsmacked. And quite suddenly terrified beyond all rational thought.

For the source of the screaming was a very round, very terrified salaryman, out late after a business meeting, whose be-suited body was clutched in the talon-tipped fingers of something that looked like it had crawled out of nightmares. It was covered in leathery looking scales and sported a pair of bony wings which seemed too small to support its immense body. Thick vile ropes of saliva dripped from its mouth as it snarled, slavering over its victim.

The phrases Rei and particularly Makoto used in that moment would have done a longshoreman proud, not that the gentlemen linked to them ever noticed. The wraith was the biggest they'd seen in several months. In fact they hadn't seen anything quite like it before. In any case, without Sailor Moon, it would take all four of the Inner Senshi working together to dust the beast.

But by general agreement, Sailor Moon had been given Valentine's off to spend with her beloved. If they used the general distress call, she'd surely hear it and come running, thereby spoiling what her court had desired most for her…an uninterrupted romantic evening with her soul mate, Chiba Mamoru.

Murphy's Law states that anything that can go wrong, will. Finagle's corollary to Murphy's Law simply adds that it will surely happen at the worst possible time. Tonight was that time. Through bad planning by Ami (surely not!) or bad luck, they were a minimum of two senshi down and up by two all too human (read: frail) sidekicks who had no clue that Rei and Makoto even WERE senshi. And they were running out of time.

"He won't last long," Rei whispered to Makoto, pointing at the victim. She could have shouted. Jed, staring at the wraith, transfixed, was completely beyond hearing. "We have to act now."

"B..but I can't," Makoto protested. "I can't attack with my powers."

"For kami's sake, why not?!" The raven-haired miko was in no mood for arguments. Their time was rapidly running out, as was the wraith victim's.

"Hello, baka," Makoto snapped, quite frustrated that Rei didn't see. "Think about it. I wield lightning. Electricity." She jangled her cuffed wrist. "Metal conducts. It could KILL him."

"Aargh!" Rei tore at her hair. "We have no choice. I'm hitting general call. I hope Usagi can understand." She jabbed the button on her communicator. Ami's special directional program would have to do to lead the others to their location. "Henshin anyway, Makoto. You have to help me at least distract that…thing."

She knew Rei was right. It would just be one, well two secrets blown to hell. Oh well, Mercury and Venus already each had someone who knew or had figured out about their double-life. This would just even up the score.

Amethyst and emerald eyes locked in a moment of understanding and resignation to what could not be helped. A curt nod was Makoto's only answer.

Neil abruptly was yanked out of his state of wraith-induced numbness by two hands dragging him forward by his collar. When his face was exactly level with hers, Makoto pinned him with a glare that was usually only used to reduce corrupt grocers and sleazy fishmongers to tears. Neil twitched, twisting in her suddenly very strong hands.

"Listen up. When I tell you to run, you run. When I say jump, Neil, you've got to jump. You hear me? Don't ask me why or how high. Just do it as fast and as high or far as you can."

"What?"

She shook him for a moment, then let loose raising both fists threateningly. "And one more thing. You're going to learn something important in just a minute and you're going to keep it under wraps because otherwise I'll give you ten very good reasons why you'll be sorry if you don't. But I'll protect you with my life. Understand?"

He nodded blankly, not understanding a thing, and she grinned, a light coming into her eyes that he hadn't seen before. The part of Makoto that relished the big fights was coming out to play. She yanked his arm up so as not to get in the way.

In the space somewhere between this world and the next existed the hiding place for magic things, and it was from this realm that two wands, ruby and emerald winked into being and dropped into waiting palms.

"Jupiter Eternal Power, Make-Up!"

Before Neil's stunned eyes, Makoto was twirling on her toes enveloped in brilliant emerald green light. There was a crackle of something that made the hair on his arms stand on end and a thunderous crash that nearly deafened him. Without warning white lightning enveloped her form and for an instant he was completely blinded by the auroral flash. As the dancing lights before his eyes slowly receded, Neil suddenly realized what was attached to his wrist…a stunning sailor soldier in pink and green. And she was wearing Makoto's face.

"Who…who are you?" he asked with the tentative voice of someone who'd suffered a major head trauma. She smiled faintly, familiarly. "You know, but for now call me Jupiter. Time to move your backside, Neil." She crouched, then sprang into the air, yelling, "Jump!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!" His scream rivaled the wraith victim's as Sailor Jupiter hauled him as close as he (n)ever wanted to get to anything like that monster.

Jed's mouth hung open practically to his knees, displaying the fine results of some very extremely expensive orthodontics in his youth. First there'd been a monster and then a Sailor freakin' Senshi had just appeared right in front of him. And before he could even turn to Rei to exclaim, "Did you see THAT?!" she plucked a star-tipped crimson wand out of thin air, thrusting it skyward.

"Mars Eternal Power, Make-Up!"

Searing heat, comparable only to a blast furnace, thickened the very air and Jed was certain he couldn't begin to draw a breath. And in the next second he didn't need to because he was holding it in tight lungs that were not even capable of function as an extremely lovely and extremely BARE Rei was spinning around before him. A burst of red-hot flame flared up around her, forcing him to look away from its glare. Only when the rippling waves of heat died away could he see again, and what he saw astonished him.

The mysterious, elusive and beautiful Sailor Mars, her tight cardinal and white fuku exactly as mouth-watering as described by his dorm-mate, was standing before him and she was…

"Rei?" he gasped, unable to believe his own eyes.

"Later," she snapped, dragging him with her as she ran out the cover of the bushes and to his utter horror pulled him face to oozing face with the Nightmare from Sendai.

* * *

"That's it exactly, Mizuno-san. Brilliant!"

Mizuno Ami, a serious-looking, petite girl with hair an unlikely, but completely natural shade of sapphire, was receiving praise for doing that which she had been doing for years…exercising the legendary brilliance that was, along with the blue hair, a legacy of her race. She did it quietly and unassumingly, her native modesty making it all the more startling when people noticed it for the first time.

"You've done it!" Zarek Veridian, flying high on caffeine and the giddy thrill of having at least a small part of his research project come to fruition, after months of day and night work, gave into the urge to dance a little jig, but he wouldn't dance alone.

Whooping loudly enough to startle the lab monkeys, he snatched Ami from her chair and promenaded her around the lab until she was dizzy but laughing. "You're crazy, Veridian-san."

"Nope, just over caffeinated, sleep deprived, and thrilled anyway." He flashed her a mega-watt grin that seemed to light up the whole room.

"Didn't I tell you to call me Zarek?" he asked teasingly. "I'm quite sure I did." He squeezed her tiny hands between his broad palms. Ami winced, feeling the handsome tanzanite ring her mother had given her bite into her fingers. For a man who rarely left the lab, Zarek Veridian was surprisingly strong.

A delicate flush tinted Ami's porcelain complexion pale pink. He had indeed...for about the last six months, ever since she'd been assigned to work with him. She'd never felt comfortable with it, though. Somehow it was easier to deal with the handsome, green-eyed lab tech when she could keep him at a distance, and refusing to use his given name was one means of separation. Keeping eye contact at a minimum was another means that she used to keep him at a distance. And that was why she missed the pained look that spread over the amber haired man's face, driving away his cocky smile, as a chill not unlike an extreme ice-cream brain freeze jolted his entire nervous system.

Ami was spared the embarrassment of answering him when her senshi communicator, disguised as an elaborate cell phone, shrilled loudly in the nearly deserted lab. Prying one hand free from Veridian-san's, she grabbed her communicator. She bit her lip as the device automatically translated Rei's urgent verbal directions into text which she rapidly scanned.

"It's an emergency. I've got to go," she blurted out, yanking her other hand from Zarek's. He flinched as the connection to something out of the ordinary broke leaving him feeling like he should have recognized something, but hadn't and was bereft because of it.

Ami pelted out of the lab and down the maze of corridors in the underground building, her shoe leather slapping on the industrial terrazzo floors. She left everything behind, from her purse to her lab notes and books to her periwinkle wool coat.

The loud bang of the door snapped Zarek from his daze and he blinked wondering what had happened. Horrified, he snatched up the first and last items, racing after her. "Wait Mizuno-san! Your purse! And it's too cold to be out without your coat!

Halfway across town, Aino Minako was staring glumly out the window, oblivious to the city sights, as the metro train rolled along.

"Perfect. Simply perfect."

Frankly, it had been a fairly cruddy Valentine's Day for her. And that was not acceptable when one was supposed to be the living avatar of love. It was HER holiday, darn it! It was supposed to be passionate. Or romantic. Or at least interesting. But noooooooo.

First, and most annoyingly, SHE hadn't even gotten a chance to meet someone. Then there was the whole ugly business with the cops. The noise complaint from the neighbors had been hypocritical in the extreme given their penchant for extremely raucous parties themselves. She knew. She'd crashed a few of them. But the police had not been in a mood to listen. She'd only narrowly escaped being hauled off to jail. (And wouldn't that have caused her mother to raise a stink?) Also, the people at the college…well, they had proven themselves to be completely uncooperative. Yes, meeting new people wasn't always easy, but you'd have thought that folks would have been a little more open to the possibility of romance, especially on Valentine's. Instead, they'd acted like Rei.

Which brought to mind another niggling detail…

Minako twined a honey lock of hair around a fingertip and stuck her tongue out as she thought back. Rei had acted almost completely unlike herself. She'd only bristled and stomped around a little bit, and that had been over the chaos that resulted from her tossing away the keys rather than about being cuffed to the cute blond man. Could it perhaps be that she actually liked the guy?

That thought brought a contemplative grin to Minako's face. Perhaps the party, abortive though it might have been, hadn't been a complete loss after all.

Heaven knew that Rei would have to be hardest nut to crinkle. She'd actually never planned into even bring Rei into the cuffing ice breaker…mostly because she knew it wouldn't have been fair to saddle an unsuspecting and unprepared male with the beauty with a buzz saw tongue, but then she'd caught a glimpse of…something, and before she herself knew what she'd been about, she'd snapped the rings around her friend's and the wickedly attractive man's wrists.

Yet Rei had, for her, scarcely flared at all…at least not after she'd vented out her first shocked reaction. And the young blond man had all but drooled over her friend, in spite of Rei's temperamental outburst. There was definitely something interesting going on there and Minako planned to keep an eye on it. The high entertainment factor would be worth it, if nothing else.

As for Makoto, she'd been the proverbial piece of pie…torte, whatever.

She'd been making her rounds of the room and spotted the tall, dark-haired male sizing up her friend, which wasn't all that unusual, but had then noticed that his gaze had ultimately come to focus on Makoto's face, not exclusively on her figure. She'd almost hugged herself with glee then. He was a nice guy. And although Makoto's taste in men had been all over the map over the years (evidently sempai could be anyone and anything) she figured it was a safe enough bet that the sinfully handsome, blue-eyed brunette would be right up Makoto's alley, especially since he was taller than she was, a point that was sensitive for the tall young woman. He seemed…right.

The two of them together, Minako knew, would be pretty as a picture and Makoto always did have a passion for aesthetics. When she'd seen him, of his own accord, making his way toward Makoto with a determined gleam in his eye, she'd all but tap danced.

'Go get her,' the born matchmaker in Minako had cheered giddily. It was just too, too easy. The sweetly dazed smile on Makoto's face when he'd touched her hand had only confirmed Minako's suspicions.

"Naturally," she murmured to herself, mentally giving herself the thumbs up. "The Love Goddess knows best, of course." And the night was still young. Well, it wasn't yet midnight anyway. She could still meet someone.

Her sunny, self-congratulatory mind set was disturbed as her communicator buzzed obnoxiously, surprisingly loud in the nearly empty train car. She checked it, groaning as she noted the all call status, which was bound to disturb Usagi and Mamoru on their special Valentines date. Who had she been trying to kid? Rei had positively no romance in her soul.

"May Cupid's thousand little darts knock you on your hot, hard, little head, Rei-chan."

Leaping from the train as it slid into the next stop at Shinjuku, Minako hot-footed it back across town. She was sprinting, making excellent time if she did say so herself, until she rounded a corner, slammed into what felt like a block wall, and her world briefly went completely black.


	7. The Final Beast And The New Freak

Chapter 7 – The Final Beast And The New Freak In Town

Hamstrung by her inability to use nearly all of her powers, at least while cuffed to Neil, Jupiter did the only thing she could. Distract and occupy the beast until the cavalry appeared.

"Flower Hurricane!"

A whirlwind of stinging rose petals engulfed the wraith. Blinded, the creature roared its outrage, rattling every window in a five-block radius.

"Get down!" Rei's voice came out of the darkness. Sailor Jupiter snatched Neil by the hand, dragging him to earth and covering his head with her body.

Mars screamed her Flame Sniper attack. The arrow of fire whizzed over Neil and Jupiter's bodies, so near he could practically smell brimstone. "Dammit!" hissed Sailor Jupiter, "Watch where you're aiming Pyro!"

"Excuse me, but who's using her power to kill the beastie and who's not?" growled Sailor Mars. "Talk to me when you've thrown something more than garden mulch at it, Jupiter."

The green clad senshi glared at her friend, but had no comeback.

"Look out!" she heard a male voice gasp. Her eyes widened a second later and she hurled Neil and herself out of the way as a massive clawed foot gouged a deep trench in the asphalt where they'd been mere seconds before. Neil swayed on his feet as he went dangerously pale. "That was too close!"

Scorching flames gouted from Sailor Mars' fingertips again as she hurled few quick Fire Soul Birds at the creature, but the flames seemed incapable of breaching the scaly hide, splashing off of it. The creature roared again, though, seemingly pained by the attack if not incapacitated by it.

"Hellfire," growled the red senshi, gnashing her teeth.

"I wish," Jed retorted, earning a wrathful 'so you think you can do better?' glare from Sailor Mars. "No comments from the peanut gallery, bright boy."

"Its scales are too thick," Jupiter gasped, flinging another Flower Hurricane at the wraith and leaping as it clawed out blindly again. "We need Mercury to tell us where its weak spot is."

"The underbelly," gasped Neil, leaping with her. "It's always the soft underbelly. Shit!" He grabbed Sailor Jupiter and rolled with her under a nearby pickup as the creature's bony wings just missed them but peeled away the vehicle's cab with the ease of a child skimming foam off an ice cream soda. The sickly sweet smell of spilled gasoline and other petroleum products hung heavy in the air. They lay there, dark brown and auburn hair twined together as they tried to catch their breaths. Blinking, Sailor Jupiter lifted her head, realizing with a pained blush that she was lying sprawled on his chest. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

He flashed her a smile that was a little too preternaturally calm for someone without powers caught in the thick of a magical battle. "If I said it was my pleasure would you kill me?"

"Probably," she whispered, gazing at him as if they were the only two people in the world, and at that moment it felt like they were. The moment, however, could not last. Not with an angry Martian princess and a rampaging hell beast around.

"JUPITER!" shrieked Mars. "Where the HELL are you?! Get your ass out here and help me!"

"Coming, mother," cracked the Jovian, rolling with Neil back into the thick of things. Opting for the direct approach, she snatched up a mailbox, literally wresting the thing off of its foundation and hurling it at the wraith's eyes, an action which made Neil gasp. The metal box crumpled against the stony snout, sending stray letters sailing through the air from buckling seams. They never had a chance to fall to earth, however, as one of Mars' Burning Mandala attacks seared the air with rings of red flame and incinerated the lot. Ash rained down around the monster and it appeared to sneeze once before coming out with another ear-splitting roar.

"What the devil _is_ all this?" inquired a disinterested sounding voice in the middle of the chaos.

Both senshi and their compatriots blinked at the sound of the voice. A tall, vaguely humanoid creature with flaming pink hair done up in spikes and freakish robes was standing between them and the monster's path of destruction, looking quite thoroughly bored.

When the beast blasted a hot, fetid breath on him, wilting the pink spiked 'do, however, the bored look vanished to be replaced with vicious anger. "Back off bat breath," hissed the man, drawing a sword of light from beneath his robes.

The creature snapped at him and he leaped, swinging. The glowing blade carved through the scaly hide like butter, lopping off part of its jaw. Foul green blood and spittle sprayed across the street and the creature screamed in pain, tightening its grip on the salaryman, sucking more life-preserving energy from him.

Pleased with the momentary distraction, the pink weirdo turned back to the senshi who each shoved the men behind them, or tried to. There was a slight scuffle as the men tried to protect them, only to get put in their places.

"Dammit! We're the soldiers, not you! Stay back!"

"Get back or I'll pummel you, Blondie!"

When Jed was finally convinced to stay behind her, Mars spun back to face the pink-haired man. "Who the hell are you?"

"Gracious as ever, aren't you, lady of fire?"

"Go to hell, freak!" snapped Mars agitatedly.

"Answer her question!" Jupiter hollered, her eyes glittering wildly. "And what do you want?"

"I want the lady of the light," said the man with an insolent smile as he flicked a glance over the two disheveled senshi. "Only her. I have no interest in you two. However, I can see she is, for some reason, not with you." The look he shot them then seemed to indicate that he blamed them for that turn of events. "But no matter. I'll find her soon enough. And my brothers will soon find you both, ladies…assuming, of course, you live." His lip curled as if he thought that unlikely. "Until then, I'll let you and your friends get back to playing with your little pet here. Ja ne, ladies."

With that, he bobbed his head in a perverse mockery of a bow, then vanished in a pouf of hot pink smoke, leaving the two dumbfounded warriors to face an even more enraged and dangerous wraith.

Jed was the first to snap out of it. "Look out," he yelped, leaping and taking Mars with him as the gore-dripping beast rounded on them. "Use a sword, dang it!" he demanded. "That's the only thing that'll cut through it. Magic won't work."

"I don't happen to have one on me," snapped the fire senshi as they ran, furious at her inability to effectively battle. "So unless you're hiding one in your shirt someplace, SHUT UP!"

She fired off a quick barrage of flame rings, nimbly dodging claws until she realized to her horror that she had been somehow backed into a corner. She could have leapt away, maybe, but the building was too high for a non-magical human to leap and there was nowhere else to hide. They were as good as dead.

Purple-violet eyes rounded in horrified realization. "Oh kami," she gasped, looking at Jed. "I'm sorry!"

"Don't be," he said, crushing her mouth under his for the barest of seconds, "If I've gotta go, Sailor Mars, I'd rather it be with you."

"MARS!" screamed Sailor Jupiter, sounding anguished. The instinct to save her companion had her screaming her attack as tears blinded her. Thunder rumbled and lightning scoured the skies. "SUPREME THUNDER DRAGON!"

The wraith's massive paw slammed toward earth, its face wreathed in lethally crackling energy.

It howled in agony, stumbling back. When Jupiter opened her eyes again she stared dumbfounded. Jed, now resplendent in a uniform of brilliant white with a navy-lined cape and polished half armor was crouched protectively over Sailor Mars, a gleaming razor-sharp blade in his hand. Green gore had sprayed out in a circle round them and splattered on the brick walls above them.

Sailor Jupiter realized to her astonishment that the wraith was staggering because a good chunk of its leg had been severed in one stroke. "My god," she gasped.

"Lord Jadeite, actually," the blond man said with a shockingly cheerful smile. He reached down and helped a stunned, silent Sailor Mars to her feet. "Well, that was surprising, no?" Glancing down at her shoes, he shook his head. "Love the pumps, hon, but they're not the best for battle."

She glowered balefully, making a swipe for Jadeite's sword. "Oh cram it!"

"Uh uh," he smirked, holding the blade out of reach. "Mine. But I'll take care of this for you. Just keep up with me, doll," he said, leaping after the wounded beast, leaving Mars no choice but to leap with him.

"You are so dead when we're done, macho man," she hissed, hurling more flames toward the creature.

Sailor Jupiter hadn't had time to do much more than gawk when she and Neil were flung across the street and through a plate glass shop window by the force of the wraith's tail slamming into them. She lay there for a moment, surrounded by a full-body halo of twinkling shards, feeling sick to her stomach. She wasn't even sure if he was alive, since she'd forgotten herself and used an electrical attack.

"I hope he's alright," she moaned weakly, trying to force herself to sit upright. Her muscles, particularly those in her shoulders, screamed at the mere idea and her wrist ached painfully as if she'd been writing nonstop for days. "Ouch...ow, ow, ow…"

A hand under her chin lifted her face toward a brilliant sapphire gaze. "Hey. Are you okay?"

"I think so…" she muttered through lips whitened with pain. Then it hit her and her eyes blazed brilliant emerald green. "Omigosh! You're alive! I didn't fry an innocent! Thank Kami-sama!"

The face that was Neil's, streaked with blood from a few small cuts yet more alive than she'd seen before, grinned arrogantly at her as he busily shook glass shards off of his brown cape. The dapper garment sported a lining that nearly matched his eyes. "Nope. Now are we going to let Jadeite and Mars have all the fun?"

He snagged her hand and hauled her through the hole in the window they'd made on entry. Somewhere, he too had found a sword, she realized. "Let's work together. Use my blade as a conductor and let's see if we can't short circuit that…that thing's heart. If it has one."

"Are you sure?" Jupiter asked anxiously, still concerned about using an electrical attack while chained to him.

His answer was an action.

Reaching far back, he hurled the sword through the night. It spun end over end like a circular saw blade and Jupiter held her breath, praying that his throw would be true. It was. The sharp tip of the blade pierced between scales and plunged into the body cavity, the aforementioned soft underbelly of the creature, burying in almost to the hilt. It howled, dropping the salaryman to claw at its body.

"Now, Sailor Jupiter!"

She nodded, jerking his arm up out of the way again so that she could spin and launch her fiercest attack. Mars and Jadeite ducked in and dragged the poor salaryman to safety, then ran for cover.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"

Crackling leaves of pure energy gleamed emerald in the dim light, swirling as she spun like a top. Suddenly she stopped, sending the stream of lethal electrical leaves showering toward the creature and sword with the power and speed of a major leaguer. Conducted through the metal of the sword, lightning crackled through the creature's battered body as a hail of deadly red roses thudded into its face from somewhere out in the night. The wraith thrashed and convulsed for an eternal minute before its heart stopped. With one last mournful cry, it expired and turned into so much dust on the wind. The sword dropped to the street with a clang.

"We did it!" cried the sword's owner, scooping it up and grabbing Jupiter into a fierce, one-armed hug.

"Way to go, Neph," said Jadeite with a smirk. "Good thinking."

"Neph?" inquired a disgruntled Sailor Mars.

"Lord Nephrite," said the brown-haired man with a smirk of his own, letting go of Sailor Jupiter and bobbing a slight bow.

"Whatever," sneered Mars. "Now if you lords wouldn't mind, let's see about the victim in all of this."

"Oh gods," said Jupiter, turning pale and racing toward the poor man's side, leaving Nephrite with very little choice but to stumble after her. She ripped open the man's suit, pressing her ear to his chest. "He's bad off. Where's Mercury when you need her?"

"I'm here," gasped a familiar voice. The panting blue-haired senshi raced over, dropping to her knees beside Jupiter. "Oh gods, I'm too late!"

Sailor Mercury knelt, pressing her fingers to the salaryman's throat. She sought a pulse, a heartbeat, a breath or any sign of life. "I'm afraid he's too far gone. He's been drained too far. But I'll call Mamoru for help." She pelted off in search of aid…and the thrower of the roses and his companion, who was being kept safely out of sight due to the presence of strangers bearing weapons.

"He's a dead man," Sailor Mars said soberly, shaking her head, seeing the grey-blue shadow of death on him, "unless the Eternal Moon Tier…" She twisted her head around to look, a sad knowing smile flitting across her lips.

As if her thought had conjured it up, they heard a voice. "Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!"

The words came out of the dark night and with them a wash of healing silver light flowed, enveloping the salaryman and the four heroes clustered close around him, bathing them in magical luminescence which lit up the whole area and penetrated into the dark of the alleys nearby. In the case of the poor salaryman it flooded a nearly entirely drained body with life-giving energy, rejuvenating a stuttering heart, breathing new life into dying lungs, and restoring oxygen deprived brain cells. He coughed and lay still but for the steady rise and fall of his chest. But he lived.

"By Ares," gasped Sailor Mars as the power of the Tier flowed over, around and though her.

"Sweet Elysion," whispered the two Shitennou, feeling a power that was eerily familiar, yet not quite exactly like something they knew they ought to know. If they could just remember…

Sailor Jupiter merely sucked in a ragged breath as the incomprehensible power streamed through her, buffeting her as it partially unlocked the vaults of long buried memories.

When it was finally over and the night was dark again, they turned to stare at one another as the changes continued to ripple through them. It was, for all, like having a blindfold ripped off and looking at the world through fresh eyes.

"For Elysion's sake, REINA!"

Jadeite could not control the giddy thrill that ripped through him. Fate surely had a bizarre sense of humor because due to a last minute choice to attend a party and one giggling coed, he'd been handcuffed to the other half of his soul. And, sweet heaven, she was every bit as much of an exotic stunner as she'd been a millennium ago when he'd first staked his claim to her. He groaned softly as his eyes raked her form desperately. Her hair was like skeins of ebony silk. In those heels, her legs still went on forever. And her pansy-heart eyes still seemed to burn into his very soul.

Without warning Sailor Mars found herself crushed into a heated embrace, bent back in a hungry kiss that made her head spin. She moaned against Jadeite's caressing lips as his nimble fingertips began toying with the bow that was both guardian and gateway to her cleavage.

"By Gaia…Angelita," Nephrite whispered both an oath and a name that had gone unspoken for a millennia. "It's you, Lita sweetheart! It's really you!"

For an eternal moment he drank in the sight of his Silver Millennium love reborn: her shining curls tumbling riotously around her beautiful, expressive face, her sparkling emerald eyes with their dark fan-like lashes, her long, sexy legs bared by her fuku, her imminently kissable lips, and her lushly rounded curves which he longed to touch again.

In the next moment, Nephrite was doing just that, sweeping her ruthlessly into his embrace, tangling his hand in her silky hair and plundering her sweet mouth passionately with his. No matter her name, she was and always had been since their first meeting, as familiar and necessary to him as the very air which he breathed. He couldn't believe he hadn't remembered, hadn't recognized her sooner. It had been a thousand years and he was bound and determined to make up for lost time.

The girls hung, though, numbly in the men's arms as the curtain over their own Silver Millennium memories was stripped back. They remembered other things. They remembered…the end.

(Author's note. They remembered the end of the Silver Millennium, that is…NOT the end of the story. And this cannot be good. BTW, it's not easy writing a fight scene (especially when I'm not great at them to start with) when the important players are handcuffed together. Very tricky.)


	8. Facts Are Facts, But Memories

Chapter 8 – Facts Are Facts, But Memories May Not Always Be What They Seem

"MURDERER!" Sailor Mars screamed when Jadeite released her lips and she recovered her senses. Her hand made a short, violent arc. The crack of her palm across his face turned every head nearby, not just his. She, Mars thought, remembered killing him after he'd struck her the mortal blow that ultimately killed her. So why the hell wasn't he dead?! What sick joke on her would let her betrayer be reborn?! He wasn't going to be allowed to get away with it or to hurt anyone else again. Angry violet eyes smoldered, darkening as her temper flared.

"YOU BASTARD! You betrayed me!" accused Sailor Jupiter, her hands tightening into fists. Bitterness poisoned every syllable from her tongue as she faced Nephrite, who didn't understand her reaction at all and who was growing more and more confused by the second. A violent storm of betrayal and fury…and fear (of him?!) swirled and flashed in her green eyes.

"I swear I'm going to Oak Evolution you straight back to the depths of Hell where you belong!" she growled, lifting her hands to attack. Thunder rumbled loudly overhead as black clouds gathered. Nephrite's eyes widened in sudden shocked realization as he watched the antenna rise from her tiara and begin to spark. She was serious! He had no idea what she was talking about, but she was really and industriously trying to KILL him!

Sailor Mars was more direct. She slammed a knee viciously toward Jadeite's groin. Her aim was slightly off, but it still hurt enough that he dropped to his knees, cupping his hands over himself as he gagged. The weight of his body on their joined wrists dragged her down with him, and she landed with bruising force on her backside. The connection between them pulled her hand against his hard thigh, intimately close. She let out an infuriated screech, floundering around like a netted fish.

Nephrite had no choice. Offering up a silent apology, he lunged at Jupiter, who cried out in fury as he drove her to the ground, flat on her stomach with him on her back. She heaved and bucked under him, screaming imprecations. Ruthlessly he grabbed the emerald-studded tiara, wrenching it from her head and hurling it far away into the shrubs where it could no longer do any harm. She couldn't electrocute him without it. Which didn't mean she was powerless, however…not by any means. As he clutched at her arm, trying to immobilize her, Jupiter chomped down on his hand as hard as she could, triumphantly relishing his yell and the taste of salt and hot copper which spread across her tongue. She'd gotten him good!

"DAMMIT!" he hollered at her, his own temper flaring. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" With his wounded hand, he wrenched her free arm behind her back and rode out the storm as she thrashed and cursed beneath him. "I don't want to hurt you, angel!"

"But I want to hurt you!" she howled, spitting the blood from her mouth and fighting for dear life. She could feel her heart wrench painfully at the hurt look she'd seen in his eyes just before he took her down, as if she'd jabbed a dagger in his heart. Damn his lying eyes and her own weak emotions! She wasn't going to give in just to die by his hands again, by Zeus!

"DIE, YOU LOATHSOME BASTARD!" The wrathful demand was screamed at Jadeite, whose pain had finally subsided a tad, though his confusion had multiplied a thousand-fold. He caught Sailor Mars' white-gloved hand just in the nick of time before she could Fire Soul him at point blank range.

"Calm down, Rei!" Forcing her hands apart, the flames died back as he pinned her wrists to the ground while he straddled her waist. Jadeite couldn't help thinking of times past when being in this position with his sweet firebrand would have been a pleasure. Of course she wasn't trying to kill or unman him then.

"GET THE HELL OFF OF ME!" she raged, kicking and attempting to rear up under him to claw out his eyes. Grimly he forced her back, letting his superior weight pin her securely. She continued to scream. "Pervert! Hentai! Ecchi! Molester!" Somehow, in the midst of the chaos, a fireball began to form on the flat of her palm.

Jadeite shot a quick look over at Nephrite who was having a harder time containing his physically stronger lady who was fighting him like a berserker. "What the hell's the matter with them?!" he hollered. "Was it that thing's blood? Or that fruity pink bastard? A spell or a neurotoxin or something?! They're out of their minds!"

"If I knew," snarled Nephrite, "don't you think I'd be fixing it right now?!"

The momentary distraction of her captor was an opening for Mars. There was just a bit of room to move her hand. If she could just get it up a little bit more…

"I'm not crazy," screeched Mars, before spitting full in his face, her hand moving as he wiped his face. Her violet eyes flamed, vowing eternal vengeance. "I just think betrayers and stone killers should die and STAY DEAD!" The flame roared up in her palm.

Quick as a striking snake, Jadeite slammed her wrist back down. The fireball bounced away, igniting a pool of oil and gasoline that had leaked to the street from the truck that been sliced into earlier by the wraith. The stuff flamed up in an instant, nearly immolating poor Sailor Mercury.

The blue-haired senshi was spared a fiery demise as a flash of lime green light blinded her. She felt an arm wrap around her waist and the world suddenly spun dizzily as she flew through the air. Mercury hit the ground hard, gasping for breath.

Her rescuer, a man with long, shiny, copper-blond curls and a quietly intelligent leaf green gaze gazed at her, his face mere centimeters away from her own. "Are you hurt, love?"

To be honest, Sailor Mercury wasn't sure. All she could see was those intense eyes, bright as new spring foliage. Her normally razor-sharp and incisive mind didn't seem to be tracking too well right now, though. He seemed to know her but she didn't have clue one who he was. Had she met him before?

"L…love?" she asked, chewing on her lower lip. She felt rather than heard him suck in his breath. The look he gave her sent a completely unfamiliar heat surging in her belly. He opened his mouth to speak, only to have his words cut off by the cry of an infuriated and terrorized lighting senshi.

The sight of a brown and white uniform and flash of green light had caught Jupiter's eye, even in the throws of her temper and she gave into panic for her princess and her friend, seeing the man she now recognized as Zoisite leaning over her.

Zoisite…the Mercurian princess' one time lover and then killer.

"Mercury!" she yelped, "Get away from him! He's one of them!" She strained desperately again under Nephrite's weight, panting. "Just get…Sailor Moon out of here! Save yourselves!"

Her outburst drew the attention of both Nephrite and Jadeite toward the senshi in blue. Mercury's senshi had the medical knowledge. Always had. In the heat of the moment it didn't occur to them to wonder why or how they knew it. They simply did. And that meant she could help them figure out what was wrong with Jupiter and Mars and why they'd suddenly gone berserk. And Zoisite was suddenly there too…

"ZOISITE! You bloody ass! Quit flirting and get over here where you're needed. Nephrite insulted the other man without a qualm. There was no time for niceties now. He could only be grateful that Mercury seemed to have retained her senses, but then, of course, she hadn't been at the fight. "We fought a battle and then this…," he jerked his head at the flailing woman beneath him, "happened. One minute they were fine and the next we had two raving, spitting, clawing hellcats on our hands."

"Yeah, kiss the girl later," Jadeite demanded. "Help us, Zoi, dammit! They're completely out of control. I mean, Mars nearly incinerated poor Mercury."

"I was trying for you!" Sailor Mars hissed, barring her teeth menacingly at Jadeite.

"I'm fully aware of that, Mars," he growled, hanging his golden head in dismay.

The pity in his eyes, false as she knew it to be, was even more infuriating than violence would have been.

Mars spat out a mouthful of her own long, black mane which threatened to suffocate her, cursing as she did so. "Wasn't it enough you destroyed the Moon Kingdom, Jadeite? Did you have to ply your evil here this time? I swear by the blood of Ares, I won't let Metallia win again! You'll have to kill me again before I will!"

His blue eyes shadowed with worry, Jadeite barked again at Zoisite. "Get your ass over here and help, man, or when this is over I'm going to jam my dagger so far into you that I'll be able to rotate your internal organs manually! She's not even making any sense now!"

Heaving himself up, Zoisite helped Mercury to her feet before moving to help his fellow Shitennou, pressing a few key pressure points on the back of Jupiter's neck, swiftly rendering her painlessly unconscious. As Nephrite drew his first relieved breath since their struggle began, the Mercurian water senshi scampered back out of range, completely confused and more than a little frightened. She felt very, very alone.

Zoisite moved on to Mars who was, by this point, even more titanically outraged than before on seeing what had been done to Jupiter. She kicked and screamed and threatened and managed to get in a good bruising bite to someone's arm before she was summarily flipped over, immobilized and then put to sleep courtesy of those same exact pressure points. It was done rather more roughly than with Jupiter, though, since Mars had nearly, albeit accidentally, flash fried someone very important to Zoisite. Jadeite merely wiped his brow and groaned out his thanks.

His work done, Zoisite shrugged away from Jadeite and, with a swirl of his cape, turned around, looking about for his princess. Sailor Mercury felt the blood drain out of her face as he stalked toward her, an intent and hot look in his eye. She felt like prey and backed away until she couldn't move any further, flat up against a wall.

She was prey. He pounced, drawing her into the snare of his strong arms and began lowering his head meaningfully toward hers. Sailor Mercury let out a squeak of protest.

It was just then that Sailor Venus belatedly made the scene, leaping from between two nearby buildings where she'd witnessed the entire incident between Zoisite and Mercury play out. She'd nearly come unglued when she'd seen how close Mars' errant fireball had come to singeing their mutual friend and comrade.

"Okay you three," Venus hissed, her honey blond mane swirling about her in an unnatural wind. "Toss away your weapons, get up, and step away from the senshi right now or I'm going to Crescent Beam you all full of so many holes you'll look like so much Swiss chard."

"Swiss chard?" Nephrite and Jadeite exchanged glances. Wasn't that a…vegetable?

Zoisite took several steps away from Sailor Mercury's side, though the sulky scowl which twisted his features clearly indicated his displeasure with the order. Twice now he'd had his princess in his embrace and twice now someone else had gotten in the way. He'd never been a patient man and starting now didn't suit him.

"Chard…cheese…chalk…whatever!" spluttered Sailor Venus angrily, realizing from their expressions that she'd misspoken, a fact which only added to her ire. "Just get away from them RIGHT NOW!" She stamped a tiny sandal-clad foot and raised her magic finger to point it at them.

"Would that we could, Senshi Venus," Nephrite said, casting the Venusian senshi wary glance as his eased his weight off Jupiter's still form carefully so as not to accidentally wrench her arm and arranged her head to gently rest in his lap. Then he tenderly stroked the hair of his poor, sick, confused love. Jadeite was doing likewise for the now insensate Mars.

"I said NOW!" Venus was in no mood for excuses, cracking her Love-Me chain like a whip.

"But…" The brunette man held up his hand, bringing Sailor Jupiter's with it. The chain on their joined wrists jangled. Hidden in the depths of the alleyway, Sailor Moon sucked in an audible breath at seeing her friends in handcuffs.

Venus's eyes widened fractionally and a dull, brick red flush heated her cheeks as understanding set in. "Oh…I see."

Sailor Mercury darted away from the intense, green-eyed stranger, feeling much safer when she was standing beside Sailor Venus, though she was alternately staring bug-eyed at her cuffed comrades and the caped stranger.

"Mercury." The sound of Venus' voice made her jump.

"Y…yes?"

Sailor Venus frowned thoughtfully. There was something about how the stranger was looking at Ami that seemed familiar. Jerking her mind back to matters at hand, though, she asked, "Is there any way to unlock those cuffs without the key?"

Being presented with a problem to solve was just exactly what Sailor Mercury needed to regain her lost focus. Peering at the cuffs carefully, Mercury shook her head. They were hardened steel and without something to cut through the metal… Suddenly she grinned, whispering intently in Venus' ear. Venus looked startled for a moment, azure eyes widening. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely," Sailor Mercury responded. "Part of your planetary influence is over metal…like your Love Me Chain. You can probably manipulate the metal on a molecular level enough to cause the cuffs to fall off Jupiter and Mars' wrists. Just concentrate."

Sucking in a deep breath, Sailor Venus walked over to the cuffed pairs. "Freeze them solid, Sailor Mercury, if they so much as twitch the wrong way. I don't know who they are but clearly Mars and Jupiter didn't trust them."

With a brisk, businesslike nod, Mercury followed, hands raised in attack position. "That means you too," she informed the green-eyed man, who did not look pleased. "Stay back."

Muttering to herself, Venus placed both hands over the cuff that bound Mars to Jadeite and concentrated. Golden light bloomed between her gloved fingers, flickering as the molecular structure of the cuffs began to weaken and break apart. She stuck her tongue out, pushing harder on her powers. Finally she felt the give and lifted her hands, gasping in delight as she eyed the cuffs. "Yes! I did it!"

The ring which had encircled her friend's wrist had completely disintegrated, a faint hint of silvery dust left visible around Mars' glove. Jadeite's half of the cuff, on the other hand, was still locked tight around his wrist, the chain swinging free. He now, however, had freedom of movement.

Reaching to scoop up Sailor Mars, he froze when Venus leveled him with an icy stare. "Put her down gently and step over there to join your friend." She jerked her head in Zoisite's direction. "And keep your hands where I can see them."

"Hey," he began to protest, but bit his tongue when Sailor Mercury stepped into his line of sight again, her face set in uncompromising lines and her hands upraised. Though it went against his wishes, he carefully laid the unconscious senshi down on the ground, glowering at her friends, and then stepped aside.

Zoisite, who had more than a small idea of what damage Mercury's powers of ice could do to a body that was some sixty percent water, hissed a warning to his compatriot, who growled something profane under his breath in response.

"This isn't over," Jadeite informed them with a steely eyed glare. "Not by a long shot."

"It is tonight, big boy," Venus said curtly, moving on to free Sailor Jupiter. This time she acted with assurance and confidence in destroying the binding cuff. It took less than half the time it had taken with Mars. She blew on her fingers as she finished, then dusted them off on her fuku's sailor collar. "A neat job, I think."

"Get Mars' feet," she ordered Mercury pleasantly, after she had banished a disgruntled Nephrite to the male warrior's ghetto to join his fellows. "I'll get her head. Tuxedo Kamen," she called out, knowing he was there, "please pick up Jupiter since we can't carry her. We'll meet at…" she paused for a moment, thinking, then smiled. "…at Central Control."

"Now wait just a damned minute here," protested Jadeite. "Aren't you going to free us too?"

"You can't just take her and go…" Nephrite objected as the strange tuxedo clad man emerged from the shadows to pick up the inert Jupiter, leaping with her to the roof of a nearby building. Seeing her in the arms of another man turned his expression murderous.

A purely evil look slid over Minako's face as she held up her hand again, itching to fire off a Crescent Beam attack or three. "It's already done, gentlemen. Consider it payback for your friend's free-hand sleep inducing technique." She shot a nasty look at Zoisite, who scowled back at her unflinchingly. "Anyway, I don't think they were too pleased with you guys as it was."

She smirked faintly and laughed, catching up Sailor Mars under her arms. "Mercury…how about some cover for our escape?"

The petite blue senshi obliged with a quick Shabon Spray, blanketing the area in thick blinding fog. When it cleared some moments later, the man in the tux and all of the women were gone without a trace, leaving only the slowly awakening salaryman to hear the curses of the three Shitennou.


	9. Recovery, Revelations and Remembrances

Chapter 9 – Recovery, Revelations and Remembrances

"Are they going to be okay?"

Usagi, even though she was fighting off the draining effects of using the Moon Tier, was pacing anxiously as Mamoru and Ami knelt over Sailor Mars and Sailor Jupiter. The bright blue of her eyes was dimmed in concern and enormous dark shadows, a sign of her emotional strain, were visible there, vivid against the translucent paleness of her skin. The others had transformed back to their civilian forms as soon as they reached the security of the Crown Arcade's dark basement, aka Central Control, but it looked like the two unconscious women were stuck until they awoke.

Before Minako could answer, a grinding noise above them had her whirling, henshin wand in hand. A darker, deeper blackness was faintly visible in the dim light. Two pairs of reflective almond eyes glinted bright green in the darkness as two beings made their way down the staircase through the hidden passage beneath the Sailor V game.

"Are they going to be okay?" demanded Luna, unintentionally repeating her ward's words, as she scampered toward the two senshi with Artemis hot on her heels.

"What happened, Minako?" questioned the white guardian cat, circling round to his own ward, looking to her as the leader.

"I don't know." Minako wrung her hands together agitatedly. "At least not all of it and I don't think we will until they wake up. Rei-chan used her communicator and said there was a wraith, but it was gone when the rest of us got there, though there were plenty of signs of battle, and they were freaking out at being handcuffed to two men in some kind of white military type uniforms."

"Handcuffed?!" Luna sucked in a scandalized breath which made Minako blush miserably. The red tint was even strong in the dim light. Artemis shot her a knowing, disapproving look.

"I'll explain about that later," Minako muttered defensively. "It's not really important now. What's important was that they were both furious and completely panicked. I mean REALLY panicked. Like hysterical. I've never seen Jupiter that scared before…ever."

She shivered, sinking down onto an extra chair that was stored in the basement. Anything that could scare her Amazonian friend that badly had to be a doozy.

Luna leaped up onto Minako's lap, sticking her fuzzy feline face right into the blonde's. "And then what happened."

"There was a third guy in white," admitted Minako. "He was all about Mercury, but the first two men made him come over and do…something to Mako-chan and Rei-chan." She scowled. "I know you're going to think I've been watching too many old TV programs, but I'd swear he did a Star Trek Vulcan Neck Pinch type deal on them. It knocked them both out." She growled low in her throat like a mama grizzly and clenched her fists in her lap, looking over at her two still friends. "I swear, if I get my hands on them…"

Soft hands covered Minako's and she looked up into the face of her princess. "It's not your fault, Minako-chan. You rescued them. I saw you. You got them uncuffed from those men, even without a key. It was amazing."

Minako burst into a flood of guilty tears. "B…but y…you don't understand. It's my fault they were with the men…in the first place….Usagi-chan." She buried her head in her hands, sobbing loudly.

Mystified, Luna and Usagi exchanged glances. Artemis leapt onto a nearby table and whacked Minako lightly in the head with his paw, giving a paternal growl. "Explain."

Sniffling, the remorse-filled blonde nodded. "Well…it was a kind of an ice-breaker for the Valentines Day party. We kind of handcuffed random couples together. I cuffed Rei-chan and Mako-chan to those men. It's all m…my fault!" Her wailing reached a fevered pitch, making Luna cringe and flatten her ears against her head.

In an enraged flurry of white fur, Artemis launched himself at Minako's face, pummeling her repeatedly with his paws. "HOW COULD YOU BE SO IRRESPONSIBLE?! BAKA!"

"Artemis!" Luna snapped warningly. "This isn't helping. She leapt from Minako's lap and slipped over to Ami's side, nuzzling Sailor Jupiter's pale cheek with a cold nose. "Are they hurt?"

The little bluenette shook her head. "From what I can see and what my computer's telling me, they're just sort of…sleeping. I think the one man," she flushed faintly remembering his intent bright green gaze, "used a pressure point technique on them. They'd probably wake up on their own given a few hours, but it may be more important that we can question them now. So if Mamoru-san and I can just hit the proper points in the right order we can probably bring them around."

The tuxedo clad man, still dressed as he had been for his aborted romantic date, nodded. His fingertips were pressed against Sailor Mars' throat as he took her pulse for the umpteenth time since they'd arrived at the safe house.

Silent tears were slipping from Usagi's cerulean eyes, dappling the concrete floor. "You can find out the proper pressure points, can't you? Ami-chan?"

"I'll try," she answered, bending over her mini-computer and running it down the length of Jupiter's body, scanning her. When it beeped, she smiled triumphantly and reached down, pressing three fingers firmly against a spot on her friend's throat with her thumb at a point somewhere near the collarbone. "Gotcha. Mamoru…tap her on the other side, just like I'm doing and up at the spot where the base of the skull meets the neck."

A low pained moan issued from the brunette on the floor as the man complied. Usagi squealed like a stuck pig and snatched up Luna, whirling the poor cat around as she danced with glee and then began to hop up and down like some sort of demented bunny on crack. "She's going to be alright! Mako-chan's going to be alright!"

"Jeeze…keep it down odango for brains," whined Sailor Jupiter in weary tones. "Oh my aching neck and head. I think we had too much sake…" She let out a pained yelp as Minako, sobbing in relief, leapt from her chair to fling both arms around her, engulfing her in a hug.

Mamoru and Ami were busy repeating the same technique with Sailor Mars and they slapped hands in triumph as a pair of smoky violet eyes fluttered open and she sat up, groaning. "Owwww…"

A soggy-eyed Usagi flung herself and Luna at the dazed fire senshi, knocking them back to the floor, Luna sandwiched uncomfortably between the two women.

"Never do that to me again, Rei-chan!" wailed the future queen. "Never, ever, ever!"

"Okay," gasped Rei, trying to unlock her best friend's arms from her neck so she could breathe. "I won't, if somebody will explain what on earth…" She broke off as the memories of the night's events came back to her and the blood drained from her face, leaving her the color of a dead fish's pale belly.

"Where is he?" she demanded fiercely, her hands bunching so tightly into fists that her knuckles went white beneath her gloves. "Where's Jadeite?! I'm going to kill that man!"

* * *

That man and his fellows were seated around a table, eying one another warily.

"So what the hell was all that about?" The speaker, whose green eyes were glittering as he reached for his drink, paused with the bottle halfway to his lips. Left alone, but for the salaryman, they'd opted to leave before he could come fully to and ID them. After that, they'd decided to do what came naturally. First, get the sad remains of the handcuffs off and then decompress with a few cold ones while they tried to sort out the massive changes that had come over their latest lives. Fortunately Zarek had his own apartment, conveniently liquor stocked, not far from the college. He'd also had tools to get off the cuffs.

Neil pinned the lankiest of the Shitennou, Zoisite, now known to him as Zarek Veridian, with a purely disgruntled look. He was absently fingering the emerald studded gold tiara he'd retrieved from the bushes before they'd left. He could almost feel the hidden power singing through the ornament. The thought that she would definitely be back for it was an infinitely satisfying one. And after all, Mercury, who'd taken her, would fix whatever it was that ailed her, wouldn't she? He had to believe that. The alternative was too unpleasant to contemplate.

"Like I told Jed at the time, if I knew, I'd have fixed it. All I know is there was magic in whatever that Moon Tier thing was and all of a sudden, poof, I remembered a bunch of stuff and realized that I had my princess attached to my wrist. But she was a helluva lot less happy to see me than I was her. But whether it was that magic or something related to the monster we fought or something else altogether, I don't know."

"Don't mention how unhappy the princesses were," growled Jed, with a pained look in his aquamarine eyes. He shifted uneasily in his chair and its straw seat squeaked alarmingly making Zarek frown. "Rei has a very sharp temper and a sharper knee, you know. Damn but she came close to making me a soprano."

Both Neil and Zarek winced in sympathy for their compatriot's purely male complaint.

"And the cuffs? You guys into some kinky new games in this lifetime or what?"

A ruddy flush stained Neil's cheekbones and he glared at Zarek, then cast a significant glance toward a handbag and coat which were hanging off Zarek's bedroom door. "Since you had a ladies purse and coat with you, you probably shouldn't be casting stones. Or have you taken up cross-dressing as a hobby?"

"Bite me," Zarek snapped. "Those happen to belong to Mercury-chan."

"Oh…so you just happened to be carrying her purse?" taunted Neil, making Zarek's nostrils flare with temper. "Cute."

Jed was not embarrassed by Zarek's earlier question, and he declined to get involved in the slanging match between the other two men. He did, however answer the question. "It was a Valentines party ice-breaker and nothing to do with us," he explained. "It was just pure chance that we happened to be cuffed to the ladies at that party." Thoughts of fiery violet eyes came to him and he amended his comment. "Or maybe it was fate. Hell, I don't know."

Neil rubbed his temple, trying to stave off his incipient headache. "Was tonight the first time either of you remembered the past…our past? Because it was for me, and I don't know what the hell to think or to do next."

"Can't you ask the stars?" Zarek muttered, then pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head in disgust. "That's stupid. Why did I even say that? Stars are just balls of burning gases that don't signify anything."

Without knowing quite why, Neil scowled, feeling unaccountably insulted.

"No, they're not."

The scientist frowned inquiringly at the blond to his left. "What are you talking about, Jed? You mean you believe in that astrology crap?"

Jed shook his head. "I don't know what I believe, but I remember that he…" –he jabbed a finger in Neil's direction– "…can divine from them. Sometimes. Just don't ask me how."

Spring green eyes slid to Neil, searching for an explanation. The brunette man shrugged. "I think he's right. The memories are there, but kind of fuzzy yet, like they're not all set into place. I'll try it before I turn in and see." He paused for a moment. "We're not complete, are we? I definitely remember us being called Shitennou. But that means four, not three."

The three men around the table shut their eyes and thought hard, screwing up their faces in concentration.

"Silver," mused Jed. "Silver hair…eyes too. Powerful."

"He was the leader, I think," Zarek muttered, rubbing a hand over his face. "Quiet but authoritative."

"A stone name like ours. K…K…," Neil finally said, his eyes snapping open as the name came to him. "Kunzite. If we're all here and alive, then where the hell is Kunzite?"

Jed looked alarmed. "Hell! If he's like us, he could have been born anywhere. I was from the states, you were from Canada. Zarek said he was in Europe. He could be anyplace on the face of the earth."

"But if he's like us," Zarek objected, "he'd probably be drawn here since this is where he's supposed to be. Under a compulsion, maybe, that he might not even understand, but couldn't deny. I don't know about you guys, but I just sort of woke up one day with the knowledge that I had to come to Japan. I didn't particularly want to, but I couldn't fight it. It didn't even make sense, scholastically speaking. But I had to."

"It was the same with me," admitted Neil as Jed nodded understandingly. "But if so, we still don't know where he is."

"Well make with the star talk mojo, then, and maybe we'll find out." Jed waved a hand airily toward the miniscule balcony that clung to the side of Zarek's apartment.

The building itself, Neil noted, was not particularly high by Tokyo standards, surrounded by much larger structures on all sides. Which would not help him much for stargazing, even if there wasn't too much light pollution to see anything. Still, he had to try. "Okay, but I'm not promising anything."

As he disappeared out onto the night, a frown furrowed Zarek's brow and then he grinned and winked at Jed. "So do you think he'll jump?"

"Maybe. If Jupiter tries to fry him again you might want to put your balcony off limits." A haunted look came into Jed's eyes. "I don't understand it. They weren't just pissed off at us…well, Mars was. But they were really afraid too. She even called me a murderer. Said I killed HER. But you know I'd sooner cut my own hand off than raise it toward her in anger…"

Zarek's smile froze in place, but he gamely tried to encourage his new-old friend. "Hey. We'll figure it out. Pretty soon you'll be back in her good graces and your fights with her will just be for the hot make-up sex. Again."

Jed sighed, managing a weary, half-hearted smile. "You say that like it's a bad thing…"

The sound of the balcony doors banging shut drew both blond heads, one coppery and one golden, toward their dark haired companion, who came in looking a bit dazed, as if his head was still off roaming the mysteries of the cosmos.

"Well?" demanded Jed in his usual subtle fashion.

"That was…weird," Neil said, dropping back into his chair and dragging a shaky hand through his tangled mop of hair. "I could hear them. The stars. See them too. Clear as bells and super bright, like a neon sign. They wanted to know why I hadn't spoken to them in so long. They were kind of ticked at me. Said they'd seen me watching for years but being too standoffish to chat."

"And?" Jed was not particularly interested in the hurt feelings of heavenly bodies unless one counted Rei's, and that wasn't the case this time.

"Hmmm…" Clearly Neil was still off in the ether somewhere.

He couldn't take it anymore. Jed slugged Neil in the shoulder, jolting him out of his contemplative state. "Wake up, star dreamer!"

"Dammit Jadeite!" snapped Neil, lapsing into very old habits, then looking startled at his own words. "God this feels familiar." And it did. Although he'd only known the two other men for a short time, one for a few scant hours and the other for less than forty five minutes altogether, it almost felt as if he'd known them his whole life.

Zarek laughed easily at the befuddled brunette. "It does feel kind of like coming home, doesn't it? So spill, old friend. I trust you kissed and made up with your stellar friends. So what great insight did they give us?"

Though his crack resulted in a dirty look from Neil, he did get an answer to his question. "They did say that Kunzite was alive and close, but they couldn't tell me where."

"Well that's encouraging," Jed said.

Neil rolled his eyes toward Zarek, who smirked in understanding. "Jed. Let me remind of something you appear to have forgotten. Close by astronomical standards is measured in terms of light years."

"Fuck!"

"However…"

"I hate it when you do that. I think I've always hated when you did that. And stop laughing Zarek, or I'll pull out your girly ponytail! Buzz cut, I swear. Or a Mohawk in day glo orange."

"Ahem…did you want to hear this or not?" Neil grinned at Jed, who finally shut his mouth. "Okay then. I do think he's near in the sense that he's probably in Japan. But I can't really pinpoint it or explain why. It's just a vague sense. Still, I think we'll find him. But more importantly, does the name Endymion mean anything to either of you?"

Jed's eyes practically bulged out of his head, standing out like turquoise marbles. Images of dark hair and deep blue eyes, almost navy in color, danced through his fatigued brain. "Endymion…Endy…"

"Hell…" Zarek choked on his beer, spewing the golden liquid across the table. "The prince. Gods! I can't believe forgot him until this very second. Cripes! What kind of guardian am I anyway?"

"One just like the rest of us, I guess," mused Neil, whacking Zarek on the back so hard he nearly shattered the smaller man's spine. "Just call us the amnesia brigade. He's alive too. So I guess our course is clear. We have to find him."

"Hell yes," said Jed, running a hand though his hair nervously until it was a swirling mass that looked like the aftermath of a tornado that had run through a wheat field. "That's our sworn duty."

"And fix whatever went wrong with the senshi too," added Neil, drawing a strongly affirmative nod from Jed.

"Definitely," agreed Zarek. A yawn he couldn't quite control slipped from him. "But we'll have to do it tomorrow, guys. Frankly, even before tonight I've been burning the candle at both ends, living on caffeine and not much else. I need sleep or I won't be able to protect the prince or the senshi from anything more fierce than a bad science grade."

The yawn was catching, as they so often are. Soon both Neil and Jed were trying to stifle them, realizing for the first time just how exhausted they were after the battle. Adrenaline letdown was a bitch.

"It's going to be a long walk back to the dorm," Jed groaned, hanging his head.

"Well, if you want, I've got a sleeping bag and a couch," offered Zarek, flipping open a closet door and pulling out the sleeping bag in question and a ratty looking throw and extra pillow for the sofa sleeper. "You fight it out and whichever of you wakes up first in the morning, make the coffee or else. G'night. Sleep tight. And don't let the youmas bite," he added, not quite sure from where the word had popped into his brain.

With that he stumbled off to his own room to dream uneasily of chess boards populated by blue eyes princes, princesses with soft blue curls, white knights and strangely twisted little pawns in the hands of a red-headed witch.

Too tired and drained to fight much, Jed and Neil soon sorted out the sleeping arrangements and snapped off the lights, plunging the room into darkness.

"You know, whatever…else we do, there's…one more thing I want." The comment from the dark was extremely broken drowsy, but firm, as if it had to be said before the speaker could really get to sleep in any kind of peace.

"What's…that?" The sleepy question was broken by an audible yawn.

"I…want…back…mmm…zzzzzzz…" The remainder of the sentence was destined to be left unspoken as Morpheus claimed the speaker before he could even finish the sentence, lulling the man off to slumber and dream of his own sweet personal goddess.


	10. The Morning After

Chapter 10 – The Morning After

"_Sweet Ares, lower your sword, Jadeite. Why are you doing this? Why?!"_

"_Do you suppose, fire senshi, that you'll bleed as red as you burn? Let's find out..."_

"_MARS FLAME SNIPER!"_

A muffled shriek followed by agonized whimpering from a sleeping Rei startled Makoto out of her own uneasy rest and she tensed, confused and scared for a moment, until realization of where she was set in. She was lying on the floor of the Mizuno living room where they'd crashed after the night's disturbing turn of events. Across the room she could see Usagi, long silver blonde pigtails draped over the arm rests of the navy wing chair she had fallen asleep in, snoring soundly with a faint trickle of drool running down her chin. Luna lay in her lap like a boneless thing, a black fur pelt that was snoozing as well.

Makoto suspected that nothing less than an atomic blast would rouse the slumbering princess and guardian at the moment, so lost were they both in the Land of Nod. Of Ami and Minako or Artemis there was no sign, but Ami's bedroom door was shut, so Makoto assumed that she was asleep. Minako and Artemis were probably still back at Rei's temple, guarding it like they'd promised, she thought.

Clawing at the blanket that had wrapped itself around her like a suffocating straight jacket, Makoto finally wriggled free and sighed in relief at finally feeling unbound. Cautiously she approached Rei, who lay on the sofa, curled in a cramped fetal position, moaning softly with tears running down her face and soaking into her pillow.

"Hey…Rei-chan," Makoto whispered, poking her. "Wake up, Rei-chan. You're having a nightmare."

The raven-haired girl thrashed wildly and Makoto leapt back to avoid getting smacked by flailing hands. As Rei subsided, she drew near again and gave her a shake.

"Wake up!" hissed Makoto firmly. "Kaidou-san and your dad are here for you."

"Tell'm both to go to he…," groaned Rei, her long sooty lashes slowly fluttering up to reveal dew-touched violet eyes that were wide with mingled hurt, confusion and anger. "Huh…wha? Mako-chan? Kaidou? My dad? But this is Ami-chan's house…"

Makoto shrugged philosophically. "Sorry. But it was the only thing I could think of that would wake you up and not risk you belting me. You were caught in the grip of a nightmare, Rei-chan, and wouldn't wake up." Deep emerald eyes gleamed with concern for her friend. "Are you okay now? I can make us some tea."

Slowly Rei-sat up, dabbing wonderingly at the salty tracks tears had made on her cheeks. "Thanks for the offer, Mako-chan, but I don't think I could stomach it right now."

To Makoto's eyes, she did look faintly green and definitely ill at ease. The brunette frowned, placing a hand on Rei's arm. "Do you want to tell me about it?"

Eyes downcast, Rei shook her head and shoved tangled ebony hair back from her wan face. "I know you'd understand, Mako-chan, but I…I just can't. At least not right now."

Impulsively, Makoto enveloped the smaller woman in a warm hug. "I can get that."

Rei finally managed a bit of a weak smile. "You know, Mako-chan…I think you might be the only one right now who does." Hitching her blanket around her shoulders, she glanced over at the window. The privacy shades were pulled, cloaking most of the room in darkness, but faint hints of light seeped in around the edges. "What time is it?"

Verdigris and mulberry eyes sought out the oversized clock which decorated the living room wall. Makoto's eyes rounded in horror as she read the display. "Oh my gods," she gasped, "is that right? If so, I've got a class in less than twenty minutes. And my knife kit and coat and all my supplies are still back at my dorm. I've got to run or Yamamoto Sensei will skin me with my own fillet knife!"

Snatching up her shoes, Makoto somehow slid into them on the run. Racing out the door pell-mell, Makoto called back to Rei over her shoulder. "Tell Usagi and Ami that if they need to find me, I should be back at my dorm by four o'clock. Oh gods, I'm so late!"

The loud banging of the front door made Usagi twitch, but ultimately failed to rouse the sleeping princess. Luna, however, blinked, yawned, and gave a long feline stretch. Rei had never before seen a cat wipe the sleep from its eyes, and watched bemused as Luna proceeded to do just that.

"Morning…," murmured the feline.

"Good morning," said Rei back. "Do you want me to raid Ami-chan's kitchen for some canned tuna or something?"

"That would be nice," Luna said with a soft purr at the prospect, following Rei into the Mizuno kitchen. "A can of salmon would be even better. I do love a nice pink salmon but Usagi's mom will insist on serving me that processed cat food garbage instead. It's practically inedible. If I didn't make Usagi save me bits from her dinner…and let me tell you, that's a tough one to enforce."

The plump feline went silent, frowning at the thought. Coppery eyes peered intently at Rei who was rummaging through the unfamiliar kitchen. "I can't find any tuna or salmon…," admitted the young woman with a grimace. "There are some anchovies, though." She held out the flat can hopefully.

"They'll do," Luna said with a wistful sigh, watching as Rei opened the can and again began rooting through cabinets until she found the one in which the Mizunos stored their dishes. Picking out the fish and laying them on a saucer, Rei placed the dish on the table for Luna before tossing the empty can into the waste basket and rinsing her hands clean.

"Breakfast is served."

"Itadakimasu!" Luna was busy inhaling the small fish with the air of a starving beast, her teeth crunching the small, pliable bones happily. She attacked them with enough gusto that Rei felt slightly sick again. She turned away, swallowing hard.

"Oh, Artemis is going to kick himself when he hears he missed this breakfast. He's got it even worse than I do. Minako, when she remembers to feed him, feeds him kibble." Luna, hearing no answer, lifted her dark head, fishy-scented oil dripping from long whiskers, and peered at Rei in concern. "Are you okay this morning, Rei-chan?"

"Finish your fish," insisted the young woman, slumping into a chair at the dining table. "We'll talk afterward. And then we can decide what to do next. Oh god, Luna…that man knows where 'Jii-chan and I live."

Luna didn't need to be told twice, gobbling up the remaining anchovies in a twinkling of an eye, but all decisions wound up being put on hold anyway as a bleary-eyed Usagi, who was constitutionally unable to sleep while others were eating anything, came out in search of food, her stomach rumbling. She didn't seem impressed, however, as she eyed the fish oil smeared saucer and pinched her nose.

"What's that horrible stench?"

* * *

Makoto had totally expected the wicked tongue lashing she'd gotten when she skidded into her Fundamentals of Catering and Presentation class red-faced, sweating and out of breath, a full ten minutes late. She'd run all the way back to the college, raced to her dorm ignoring Chryso-san's nasty remarks (didn't the damned woman ever go to class anyhow?), flung off her sweater dress from the party and flung on her working whites and chef's coat, snatched up her knife bag and bolted for class, but there was no helping it. She was late, late, late. And Chef Yamamoto, aka Yamamoto Sensei, had let her have it. All she could do was stand there, head respectfully bowed, and let him vent his temper on her. In fact she'd been rather surprised that she'd gotten off as lightly as she had. He hadn't vowed to dock points off her that day. Makoto could only be relieved.

The relief was short lived when he began hovering near her section, eyeing her work more closely than he ever had before. In fact it flustered her so badly, she slipped and nicked herself with her knife.

"Always know where the sharp end is pointing, Kino-san," he reproved, making Makoto blush unhappily.

"Yes, Sensei," she muttered, cleaning and bandaging her wound.

She became only more unhappy when he later came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. With his hands directly over hers, guiding her knife, he watched her julienne vegetables with rapid precision. Never before had he done such a thing and it rendered Makoto, for once, completely unable to slip into the pleasant zone she usually occupied when cooking.

Makoto silently groaned, biting her lip as she noticed a few of her male classmates whispering amongst themselves. It didn't take a genius to figure out in what gutter their thoughts were splashing. She decided she infinitely preferred it when the only apparent interest the chef had taken in her was to yell at her (he always yelled) that her pastry handling was excellent and her filleting technique with fish was good, but that her radish roses were a pure disgrace. That she could live with, though she disagreed about the radish roses.

When, oh when, was the miserable class going to end?

It seemed to drag on for an eternity, but the clock finally granted Makoto her freedom. She scrupulously cleaned her knives in grim silence as her fellow students, virtually all men, smirked knowingly (or at least it seemed that way) at her. Finally one of them, a cocky little twerp with a well known bad attitude toward women in general and women in the culinary business in particular, said what she knew at least some of them had been thinking.

"So, Kino-san, is that the way you've been getting your good reviews from Sensei all this time? he said, his eyes dropping contemptuously to her chest. "Guess you must've been late getting out of his bed this morning."

Letting out a low growl, Makoto held up one of her knives, gleaming and razor-sharp. "Do you want to eat this, Kentaro baka, or do you plan on shutting up your filthy, misogynistic mouth? Either way is acceptable to me."

He drew back fast, apparently convinced that she might just follow through on her threat, though he managed one final sneer. Makoto sagged back against the counter and slammed her fist down onto it so hard she rattled bowls at the other end and she felt the sting radiate up her arm. This sort of thing could hurt her future career, since the culinary world was small and reputation was so very important. Gathering up her knife kit with an icy scowl, she left the classroom.

Her mood was not improved when she spotted someone in the corridor, who'd evidently been waiting for her for some time.

"Aaaargh!" she yelped as a hand caught hers, innocently pressing against her small cut. It wasn't pain, that made her cry out, but she needed to release her anger and tension somehow and it was as good an excuse as any.

"Good afternoon to you too, angel," Neil said with a winning smile, giving her a lazy and appreciative once over. Makoto, yanking her hand back, was stunned to realize that for whatever reason and in spite of everything, his look didn't make her feel dirty in the way that Yamamoto Sensei or the woman hater's had. The thought, however, wasn't a particularly happy one, however, given what she'd remembered of him the night before. It was just one more thing to confuse and fluster her today, after the first flash of righteous anger had passed. Why in the hell was she so susceptible to him, even now? Why did he look so good when he wasn't? It wasn't fair!

His dark azure eyes were soft as he asked her, "How was class?" It was not, under the circumstances, the best question he could have asked that day, though he'd had no way to know it.

Makoto went rigid, clutching her knife kit like it was both sword and buckler. Her face crimsoned with renewed anger. "I want nothing to do with you. Please go away before I'm forced to fry you!"

'I'd like to see you try,' Neil thought, fingering the gaily wrapped package he held.

He still smiled, though it now seemed slightly forced, his usual charming nonchalance failing miserably in the face of her obvious anger. Still, he was making a game effort to not take her hurtful words too personally. Evidently Mercury hadn't fixed the problem. Or at least not entirely.

'At least she isn't trying actively to kill me,' he thought, trying hard to look on the positive side. If there was one.

"Go away?" he protested. "I don't think so. I brought you a gift. Something I knew you'd love, Li."

"How dare you? You know nothing about me!" Makoto looked murderous. "For starters, my name is Makoto. Ma-ko-to. And for the record, Lita is DEAD." She shot him a highly significant look and he flinched.

"Look, I don't know what you _think_ I did, sweetheart, but if you'd just tell me. I'd never hurt you…" he began, looking at her almost pleadingly. Makoto felt her heart flutter unsteadily and she stumbled back, bracing herself against the wall. Glaring at him, she steeled her heart by forcing herself to remember the feel of cold laughter and colder steel, followed by hot blood. Her blood. Anger was better than breaking down in front of him entirely.

"You already did," Makoto sniffed, waving her bandaged hand before him, making him blink as he noticed it for the first time. "I'm not explaining anything. I'm leaving!"

"Angel…"

She spun to leave, letting out a cry when his hand closed on her wrist and she felt something being forced into the palm of her uninjured hand. "NO! LET GO!" she snarled ferociously, swinging her knife bag toward his ribs. Still slightly bruised from their altercation the night before, he danced back from the swing, freeing her wrist.

Sadly, he looked at her. "I'll go now, angel, because I can see you're upset. But…," his face morphed into a determined mask, though his eyes still remained heartrendingly sorrowful, "We were meant to be together, angel. I know it took some time then and it'll take some time to adjust now, but sometime soon you'll tell me…because I am not giving up on us."

Makoto's fist tightened around the package he'd shoved into her hand and she shook her head vigorously, as much to convince herself as him. "No. No. There is no us, Neil...Nephrite…and there never will be."

She shot past him before he could say anything more and fled down the back stairs as if all the hounds of hell were at her heels, the tears stinging her eyes. Only when she'd convinced herself that she'd lost him did she finally stop running and start to double back across campus toward her dorm room. Lost in her own anguish, she never noticed the green-eyed man following her, his face a study in concentration as he jotted down a few notes on a notepad he yanked from his pocket.

Realizing that one of her dorm mates, who'd been exiting as she entered, was giving her head a funny look, Makoto groaned and jerked off the none too attractive hairnet she'd forgotten she'd been wearing, shoving it deep into her coat pocket. She took a moment too, to swipe away the tears. There was no need in giving Chryso-san, who'd taunted her before about such omissions before, ammunition.

Chryso Beryl's weird orangey eyes were quick to spot any oddities in one's appearance or manner, the better to exploit them for her own amusement. Makoto had been a frequent target of the woman's viperous tongue and had rarely come out on top. Therefore, she tried to avoid being noticed at all. Today, however, Chryso-san had been actively searching for her.

"That's a pretty cheap looking fall," sniffed the older woman, clucking her tongue and eyeing Makoto's cascading ponytail. Not for the first time while in her presence, Makoto was reminded of a snake scenting the wind for prey by flicking out its tongue. Actually, Beryl had a rather toxic, serpentine air about her that usually gave Makoto the creeps. Today it just made her mad…especially when she suggested, "You ought to get rid of that hair piece."

"Not that it's any of your business, Chryso-san, but it's my real hair."

"Right…" Sarcasm dripped like venom from the red-head's tongue.

"More real than the bottle yours came from," Makoto sniped with an acid smile, giving into the low urge to retaliate that she'd avoided in the past. Beryl's eyes flashed as the shot hit home.

A comment about her figure being more real than Beryl's too was on the tip of Makoto's tongue when a hesitant voice stopped her.

"Mako-chan?"

"Oh Ami-chan." Makoto flushed, embarrassed at being caught at her worst. "Let's go up to my room." She shot Beryl a nasty look. "We'll have so much more privacy to talk up there."

Beryl glowered at her, but hesitated to attack in front of witnesses. "You will let me know if you're going to be out _all _night again, won't you?" she said, managing a moderately convincing note of concern, all the while implying Makoto was a tart who'd been out on the tiles.

"You bet, Chryso-san," Makoto said with a smirk. At least in this instance, the annoying woman would get no satisfaction since Ami knew full well where Makoto had been. She turned to Ami, smiling sweetly. "Thanks for putting us up for the night after Minako-chan's Valentine's Day bash. I know I appreciated it and I'm sure Rei-chan and Usagi-chan did too. It's been a long time since the gang had a friendly pajama party."

Ami blinked, but nodded uncertainly, her eyes fixed on the strange woman. Makoto's words had, for some reason, caused her RA to look fit to chew tacks. "It was no problem. Shall we go, Mako-chan?" the petite girl urged.

"Of course. Ja ne, Chryso-san."

The sound of a slamming door was the only reply, making Makoto snicker as she and Ami climbed the stairs to her room. "That was fun. Thanks for showing up. You helped me spike her guns."

"Your residence advisor. She's…," Ami groped for words, "…different."

"She's a bitch," Makoto said bluntly, shoving her key into the lock and opening her door. "No, now don't give me that wide-eyed look, Ami-chan. She really is one. That's even what the girls in this place call her. Beryl the Bitch. Because she enjoys taking shots off of people for spite. Ignore her. I try to most of the time, but she got on my last nerve today, which is why you saw that awful catty display. Sorry."

Dropping her knife kit and the gift-wrapped package that Neil had given her on the desk, Makoto urged Ami to take the one chair in the tiny room while she shed her coat before dropping to sit on the bed. "Make yourself comfortab…ouch!"

Confused, Makoto bounded to her feet, relieving the pressure on her scalp where her hair had been pulled taut when she sat. "What on earth?"

"What's the matter, Mako-chan?" At the pained yelp, Ami had glanced over to see Makoto holding the end of her ponytail in her hand, looking stunned.

In numb tones, Makoto spoke. "Ami-chan…how long would you say my hair is? I mean in the ponytail."

"Um…," Ami looked at the wavy red-brown mass consideringly. "To the top of your thighs, I guess."

"And what color would you say the ends are?"

"Kind of greenish, but I don't understa…"

Makoto paled alarmingly. "I was afraid you'd say that. Ami, I know you don't pay attention to such things, but my hair was barely to the middle of my back last night and very, very NOT GREEN. And I didn't dye it. No wonder Chryso-san thought I was wearing a crummy hair piece. What's going on? How can my hair have grown this long and turned green in just one night?!"

"Calm down Mako-chan," Ami said briskly, hopping to her feet and taking a lock of her friend's hair in her hand, peering at it. "We'll find out what's happening. I might have to cut some of it, though, to analyze. And maybe some blood later, if you wouldn't mind."

Nervously, Makoto twisted her hands together. "If you've got to, Ami-chan, then fine. Whatever you need. Take the hair now." She reached for the scissors in her desk caddy, ready to hack off everything that was green and make her hair back to normal with one slice.

"Hold up." Ami grabbed the scissors away. "Don't go nuts on me, Mako-chan. I just need one little piece, not half your head, but I need to cut it from close to the scalp so I can analyze the full length of it. I won't cut too much, though. I don't think you'll even notice the cut piece since yours is so thick and curly."

"Just do it, please," Makoto moaned, staring at herself in the mirror she'd mounted to the back of her door. "I'm going to put it up because it's freaking me out to see it like this."

There was a soft snipping sound as the scissors did their work, leaving Ami in possession of a long curling lock of hair that was a rich shade of auburn except for the last ten centimeters or so, which were of a definite green cast. "Okay," Ami said, winding the strands around her finger. If nothing else, they felt normal. She tucked the hair away in her subspace pocket for future analysis. "I'll look at them tonight. Hopefully I'll have some answers for you tomorrow. I can sneak in and use the lab facilities if I have to."

"Thank you, Ami-chan," Makoto said fervently, quickly braiding her hair to put it up into a rough bun on the back of her head so she wouldn't have to look at it. "This is _too_ weird on top of everything that happened last night. Do you know that he even had the gall to approach me today after class, as if nothing had happened?"

"Who? Nephrite? I mean, Sterne-san?"

"Yes," Makoto hissed. "He's trying to play innocent but I remember what he did and he can't fool me." She glared at the present on her desk. "No matter how many gifts he tries to buy me off with. I won't play his game again."

"What is it?"

"I don't know," growled Makoto, twining her braid into a top knot and hiding the green edges beneath her scrunchie, "and I don't care."

"May I open it, then?" Ami's fingertips hovered over the ribbon.

"It may not be safe. You know what he did…" Makoto bit her lip. "I couldn't stand it if you were to get hurt because of something meant for me."

"I'll be careful," Ami assured her, picking up the package and shaking it gently. The package rustled invitingly. "It doesn't sound dangerous. But I'll scan it first."

Reaching into her bag she pulled out the mini-computer she'd cunningly disguised as a PDA. She ran a quick scan, giving the results a cursory glance. "Whatever's inside, it's got a power, but it's not malevolent. It's familiar. I think you'd better open it, Mako-chan. Not me."

A hint of uncertainty shadowed Makoto's green gaze as she eyed the bright, clumsily wrapped package like she would a poisonous snake, but finally with a bit more urging from her friend, she agreed to open it. Slowly she picked up the package and ripped into the paper. It fell away revealing a small box, which she opened dubiously. It was filled with wads of crumpled tissue paper.

"If this is his idea of a joke," Makoto muttered, plunging her hand fully into the box. She broke off with a gasp as her fingers touched metal which pulsed and sizzled warmly, like it was welcoming her back after an absence.

"Oh sweet Zeus," she muttered, tossing away the topmost pieces of protective padding to reveal the item carefully resting in its tissue paper nest. She lifted it out, gasping as a late afternoon sunbeam caught it, making the gold and emerald circlet gleam richly in the small room. "It's my tiara."

Troubled green eyes sought out compassionate cobalt. "Ami, why would he give me back the one thing he knows I could most easily use to harm him? He was far safer when I didn't have it, and I hadn't even realized it was gone. He had to know that. So why did he do this?" Makoto clutched the tiara to her breast, just over her heart, which felt like it was breaking. "I just don't understand…"


	11. The AfterWeirdness

Chapter 11 – The After-Weirdness

Ami convinced Makoto to return to the Hikawa Jinja with her, saying, "I know that Minako will be there and Artemis, and Rei said she wasn't about to, and I quote, let any kami-cursed Terran traitor, unquote, keep her from her home. So she'll be there too. I'll call Usagi and we'll have ourselves the emergency meeting we didn't get to have this morning and were too tired to do last night. This is senshi business, after all."

Makoto, eager for anything to get her mind off her two-tone hair and her confused heart, agreed in a trice.

They slipped from the building while Chryso Beryl was busy berating an unfortunate freshman who'd had the bad luck to run afoul of her while she was brooding over Makoto's snide remarks. The sick look on the poor innocent girl's face made Makoto's stomach churn. She hated it when others had to deal with fallout over something she'd said or done. But it was too late now since Beryl, who'd been gunning for a target, any target, had gotten the girl in her sights.

Ami, correctly reading the guilty look on Makoto's face, grabbed her arm and dragged the taller woman off to catch a bus before she felt compelled to run to the rescue. There simply wasn't time enough and there were, unfortunately, more important issues.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Did you have the feeling we were being watched," Makoto hissed in Ami's ear as they made their way up the temple steps from the bus stop below. She rubbed absently at her hand. "Those businessmen were definitely checking you out, Ami-chan. And they weren't subtle about it."

"Not me," denied the petite woman, looking mightily embarrassed. "Maybe you…"

"Gods," Makoto exclaimed. "Don't say things like that today. If I wasn't convinced it was up, I'd think they were staring at my hair." She shot a quick sidelong glance at Ami. "It is still all up and no green showing, right?"

"Yes," sighed Ami. "It's fine."

"Thank Zeus," muttered the taller woman with feeling, drawing a strange look from Ami.

"What?" asked Makoto uneasily.

"It's just that I think that's the second time you've used an oath that I think is Silver Millennium, possibly Jovian in particular. I wonder if it's a side effect of the memories you mentioned returning."

When Makoto simply looked blank, Ami shook her head. Maybe she was reading too much into it. Two Zeus' from her friend's lips did not constitute a valid sample. Still…

At the top of the stairs they ran into Yuichiro, who was busily sweeping the courtyard and waved at him. "We're here to see Rei-chan, okay?"

To their complete astonishment, he dropped his willow broom on the flagstones and gawked at them, even going so far as to use both hands to push his overlong, sheepdog-like bangs out of the way when they impeded his view. Makoto's hand went immediately to her hair for a brief reassuring second before she began scratching at her hand. The itch was annoying, by Hera's hundred eyes.

"My god, you're both beautiful," blurted out the shaggy haired young man before he blushed red as a stoplight.

Ami and Makoto both blinked, staring at him wide-eyed. "Um…" Ami began. "Maybe you'd better lie down in the shade, Yuichiro-kun. I think you may have been in the sun too long."

The young man gazed on Ami as if she were a goddess from on high. "You're so kind to be so concerned…"

"I agree," muttered Makoto, glancing up at the rather cloudy sky and backing away from the man as though he were dangerous. Under her breath she added, "Or the drugs are finally kicking in."

"We'll just…let ourselves in. Come on, Ami-chan." She grabbed Ami's hand, jerking her away from the highly embarrassed young man, who nonetheless followed their every move until they disappeared from sight inside the temple.

"What was that all about?" she demanded as soon as they slid the door shut behind them.

"I haven't the foggiest," replied Ami, shaking her head as she removed her shoes, fumbling for a pair of slippers for indoor wear.

"Who's there?!" growled a familiar voice, followed by a golden head poking out from one of the doorways. "Oh…it's you two. Come in here, please. We have so got to talk."

"Okay, Minako-chan." Makoto, after likewise ridding herself of her shoes and exchanging them for a pair of house slippers, followed Ami into the room, glancing back over her shoulder for a moment before sliding the door shut. As she dropped onto a cushion on the floor, she shot a look at Rei, who looked tired and harassed and…

"Oh my gods!" Makoto yelped. "What happened to your hair, Rei-chan?"

The fire priestess winced, covering her head with a hand. Makoto had every reason to sound shocked for deep, rich wine-red highlights had threaded themselves through a long portion of her raven locks, making the mass gleam with subtle fire. Even Ami looked startled, muttering to herself under her breath.

Rei shot both women a peevish look. "I don't know what happened to my hair. It was normal when I woke up and then sometime today this started happening… it's been only a tiny sign of the weirdness that's been going on today."

"What weirdness?" demanded Makoto, looking first from Rei to Minako. "What on earth is going on? And what's with Yuichiro? He's acting bizarre."

"You noticed it too?" Rei asked sourly. "Because I thought it was just me being overly sensitive today. I mean, what is it? A full moon? I think every ecchi man on the planet visited this temple today. And Jiichan, who is usually a horrible fli…"

She broke guiltily off as the door slid open to reveal, fortunately, a gleaming white tom cat instead of a wizened old priest. Artemis slid the door panel closed behind him, then froze, staring fascinatedly at Ami and Makoto, his mouth wide open. "Wow!"

Pained blushes were exchanged as both girls looked helplessly at one another. What was going on? First those men, then Yuichiro, and now Artemis.

"Don't you start THAT again," snapped Minako crisply, snatching up Artemis by the scruff of his neck and giving the guardian a good shake, "or it will be stale kibble for you for a month. Baka. Rei was right. Every male on the planet, apparently regardless of species, really is losing his mind today. Or at least what brains they do possess have dropped south of their belts."

"I'm sorry," whined Artemis, not wanting Luna, who was due to arrive any time now, to see him being manhandled in such a fashion. "Put me down, Minako-chan. I promise I'll behave."

"You'd better," huffed the blonde, dropping her guardian unceremoniously. He slunk away from her, pointedly not looking at any of the girls, and Minako nodded in satisfaction.

"Don't mind him," she said to Ami and Makoto. "He'll get over it in time. I don't know what ails him, but he's acted like he just noticed for the first time we, and I include myself in this, were all female. It was weird…and kind of disturbing actually."

Makoto couldn't help nodding. "I know what you mean. My sensei was like that today." She shuddered. "I liked it better when all he saw was my cooking. Even if he did think my radish roses were lousy."

She shot a glance over at Rei. "I'm sorry I made such a fuss over your hair, but you see I kind of am in the same boat, except mine grew longer too." At Rei's and Minako's curious glances, Makoto undid her bun and showed them the end of her braid. "See…" Glancing down at it she groaned. "Augh…it's getting worse. Now even more of it's green. At least another 5 centimeters or so." She turned to Ami with an imploring look. "You have got to figure this out before it goes completely green."

"Cool hair color, Mako-chan," announced a voice from the door. Usagi, clutching Luna under one arm like a football, beamed serenely at her assembled senshi. "Like a wood sprite or something. And Rei-chan too. Why didn't you two tell me you were getting it done? I'd have gone too. Maybe pink highlights or tipping…"

"Twit!" Rei grumbled, tossing her hair impatiently. "I didn't do this deliberately."

"Me either," moaned Makoto, slumping. "It just happened. I feel like an escapee from a circus sideshow. If it doesn't stop then pretty soon I'll look like the bride of the Jolly Green Giant."

"But you look fabulous," protested Artemis, who ducked, scampering away as Minako hissed a scandalized, "Hentai! I warned you," and muttered something else evil under her breath. Makoto groaned, the itch in her hand going into overdrive.

"Sorry…I didn't mean anything by it," the male cat sniffed toward his mistress, though he kept a wary eye on Luna as well.

The feeling of freakishness was only exacerbated as Luna wiggled free from Usagi's grip to peer closely at each of the Inner Senshi in turns, taking special note of their hair and faces. "Stop it," Rei finally muttered, jerking back.

"I'm sorry," said the black feline. "It's just that I don't think Artemis is being a _complete_ ecchi. There's definitely something different about you girls and it's not just your hair, Rei-chan and Mako-chan. I think Ami's seems a bit…bluer and Minako's perhaps more golden. But it's hard to be sure because it's not as wild a difference. Have you all been noticing other changes?"

The four girls frowned, debating whether to mention what they'd been noticing all day in front of Usagi. They had an unwritten but nonetheless generally applied rule that they tried to preserve their princess' innocence of the seamier side of life. Still, Luna had asked.

"Um," Rei said, "well, did you notice anything unusual in Yuichiro-kun's behavior today, Usagi-chan?"

"You mean more so than usual?" asked the girl, sitting down to the low table which had been the site of so many painful study sessions in their junior high days. "No. Not really."

Luna scowled. "I know what you're thinking, girls. But you may as well say it because we can see it in your faces that something is up. Usagi is your princess and she deserves to be informed of any…"

"Okay, okay," Ami cut in quietly, her face turning pink as she tried to find a tasteful way of putting it. "Males today, Yuichiro-kun included, have been acting a little, um…odd. Noticing us when they haven't done so before. It's been distinctly uncomfortable to put it mildly."

Rei and Makoto nodded vigorously. Minako simply glared at Artemis, who cringed.

Luna pursed her lips. "Interesting. And this is all new, you say…and for all four of you?" The small black feline paced around for a moment, mulling over the information. "Well," she finally said, dropping back on her haunches, "there's one reason I can think of for some of this happening, but it doesn't make sense under the circumstances."

"Well I'm up for any answer," Rei fussed, "no matter how unlikely, Luna. Talk."

The cat shot her a narrow-eyed look. "Since you asked so nicely…"

Rei flushed at the reprimand, looking reddish all over. Sometimes she tended to forget that the little Mau guardian had a streak of pride every bit as strong as her own. "Sorry, Luna," she muttered under her breath. "Please?"

"Oh alright," Luna finally gave in, setting aside her dented pride. "I vaguely recall that Princesses of the Silver Millennium were said to undergo a period of change after they met their soulmates. They were said to become more beautiful…more…their ideal selves, and this was naturally noticed by others. It was said to reflect their inner happiness or something like that, though," she frowned, her whiskers twitching, "there was no particular science that backed up that idea, at least not that I remember. Artemis?"

The white guardian cat risked a glance upward, but shook his head. He couldn't recall anything at all about such a change.

"You mean like that time when Usagi-chan's hair went silver and grew super long?" Makoto pounced on the idea. Abruptly she paled. "But…"

"Exactly," Luna added. "But none of you, that I am aware of, have met a soulmate, so it's meaningless."

"I'll say!" snorted Rei, bristling. "The only man I've met and spent any time with recently is that misbegotten Terran murderer reborn. And if he's my soulmate, then I'm a...a...Vermicious Knid,"she sputtered. Rei shot a flame-eyed glare at Minako, who held up her hands in mute apology.

"Maybe it's a side effect of Crystal Tokyo's time drawing closer," Usagi mused, drawing shocked looks from Rei and Ami and Luna.

"What? You think I can't have an occasionally decent idea. Future queens are supposed to be reasonably bright. If we're alive as far in the future as the time Chibi Usa-chan was from, it's pretty obvious that we're going to undergo some major changes."

Ami's brow furrowed as she considered the possibilities. "You know, we could be reverting."

"Reverting to what?" asked Makoto, looking confused and anxious as she twisted her hands together. She wasn't sure she liked the sound of that.

"To our Silver Millennium selves. Complete with more extensive magic. Though that would probably only make sense if all of us had our memories returned, and clearly Minako and I didn't," she commented, ignoring Makoto's protest that her Silver Millennium self wouldn't, simply couldn't have had green hair.

"It could, of course, be something else entirely. Exposure to something, possibly." She glanced at Makoto's hands. "When did you get that rash, Mako-chan?"

"Huh?" For the first time Makoto consciously noticed the red mark which was darkening on the pale skin of her fingers…or at least finger. Around it were livid white scratches from her nails. "I'm not sure. I guess it has been kind of itchy today. But it's probably just something I got into in cooking class. Some of the stuff we use in cleanup is a bit chemically harsh."

"Or it could have been something that either the Shitennou or that pink fellow you mentioned exposed you to." Mulling over that notion, Ami whipped out her computer and began typing so fast her fingers were a blur.

That idea added a whole new layer of horror to the mix and Makoto's thoughts went to the horror stories she heard in the news about germ warfare and terrorist activity like the whackos who put sarin in subway tunnels. "I don't want to think about that."

"We have to consider all possibilities, Mako-chan," Ami muttered, still typing. "But don't borrow trouble. I'll take a swab of that, if Rei-chan has a Q-tip, and analyze it when I do your hair. And your blood, because now I think it's definitely worth looking at. And you too, Rei-chan."

"But I don't have a rash."

"Yet," Makoto interjected, drawing a dirty look from Rei, though she didn't see it because she had her eyes closed, imagining the worst.

"Well don't scratch it anymore," Usagi insisted, leaning over to peer at Makoto's hand. "It'll get infected. Maybe Ami has something to fix it."

As she leaned over to poke at the rash, Ami grabbed Usagi's hand away before she returned to her computer. Makoto moaned mournfully. "If you all are going to treat me like I'm contagious…"

"I'm just acting with an overabundance of caution," protested the young blue-hair.

"Don't get overly dramatic, Mako-chan," Rei barked. "That's Minako's job and she won't thank you for butting in. Just use some calamine lotion or something until Ami figures everything out."

"I really think a cortisone based cream would be more efficacious." Ami, in med student mode, added in her two cents. "There are some decent over the counter brands. I'll ask mother which one she recommends most and call you, Mako-chan."

"You know," Usagi said excitedly. "It really only seems to be in one section. You weren't wearing any cheap jewelry, were you?"

A negative shake of Makoto's head had Usagi looking dispirited. "Rats. I thought I was onto something for a moment. Though I guess they usually say those cheap rings and stuff leave green marks on your skin, not red ones." She scratched at her head. "Ah well. That's why we have Ami-chan, future doctor extraordinaire around."

"Ahem." Minako cleared her throat. "Much as I of all people can sympathize with bad skin and hair days, if we can get past Makoto and Rei's physical crises, perhaps we could get down to the matter of what to do regarding the Shitennou. I'm sure that their reappearance had to be a shock to poor Mamoru-kun. After all, he didn't even remember he HAD Shitennou prior to this, let alone that they betrayed him and destroyed the Moon Kingdom."

She scowled for a moment, wishing with considerable might that she could remember instead of having to rely on what Rei and Makoto had imparted, then turned her intense azure gaze on Usagi. "Did he say what he was going to do?"

A lot of blond hair bounced as Usagi nodded. "He said he was going to do some computer searching and checking at the college to see what he could find out on the names that Rei-chan and Mako-chan gave us. Unfortunately we don't know what alias third one, Zoisite, is going by now, if any."

"I do wish that Sailor Pluto was here," fretted Luna, pacing. "She might be able to give us so much more insight."

"Not likely," snorted Rei. "She lives to be cryptic."

"Anyway," Makoto said with a shake of her head. "Isn't she off planning a bloody, key-related death for the scientific community who…um…demoted her planet? Or did I mis-hear her that one time when the wraith was at the observatory. Something about wiping certain astronomer folk from the timestream…"

"No, you're right. She did say that." The senshi leader turned from Makoto to Ami.

"I know you probably want to go to town finding out about everything, Ami-chan, but I say we let Mamoru-kun handle the Shitennou part, at least for the moment. You're more needed to research what's going on with Makoto and Rei's physical changes. Because if they were made sick by something during the attack, then it's probable that the enemy is going to try again."

Everyone nodded, apparently in general agreement that Minako's plan was best for the time being.

As she reminded them, "We have to keep Usagi-chan and Mamoru-kun protected from both parties until we know what they're up to. And Rei-chan," Minako added with a sympathetic smile, "you can keep trying with the sacred fire."

At Makoto's and Usagi's curious expressions, she elaborated. "Rei tried a fire reading. It booted her out, so to speak."

"Minako!" A disgruntled Rei crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the voluble blonde who merely smiled serenely.

"Well it did," she reminded the pouting fire priestess matter-of-factly.

In response, Minako got only an aggravated and inelegant snort, which had Ami, Makoto and Usagi giggling behind their hands. The tension in the room, which had been almost palpable, eased and Minako was grateful for it. Luna, in spite of her worries, smiled. It was good to see them joining together once again. They were all so good together, even when they bickered.

"Unless Rei-chan has an objection, I'll spend tomorrow here," Makoto graciously volunteered, eager to be anywhere but alone on campus. "Maybe Usagi should come here too. With everything she's taught us over the years, we can take over Rei-chan's regular temple duties so she can keep working with the fire." She cracked her knuckles, saying, "I'm sure Phobos and Deimos will give me plenty of warning if any of those…those…men decide to show up. But they'll be sorry for it if they do."

"See. You couldn't ask for better protection for your home and Ojiisan," Usagi piped up, beaming at her senshi. "Teamwork. That's what's going to get us through this."

The sliding door panel slid open and a remarkably spry for his age, very bald-headed old man in the robes of a priest popped in. Artemis and Luna immediately slumped to the floor, adopting as much as was possible the terminally bored, sleepy look of the average housecat. The old priest took one look around the room and, spying the newcomers of Makoto, Usagi and Ami, a gleeful leer split the old man's face, deepening the crepe-like layers of wrinkles there. He never even noticed Artemis clapping shut the lid to Mercury's computer and shoving it toward the blue-haired girl whose nimble fingers returned it to the magical hiding place from whence it came.

"Rei-chan, Rei-chan, Rei-chan," he reprimanded his granddaughter, sidling around the room for a better view of the assembled planetary beauties. "How could you not tell me your lovely young friends were here?"

"Yeah…teamwork. And a lot of aspirin and a side of saltpeter," mumbled Rei under her breath.

(Author's Notes: Mako's little mental grumble about Hera's Hundred Eyes is mythically based. In mythology the peacock was the bird of Hera, queen of the Gods. One myth told of Argus, Hera's hundred eyed giant whose job it was to spy on Zeus and discover his trysting places. When he discovered Zeus with Io (Jupiter's Io Castle anyone? ;), Zeus changed Io into a cow to escape Hera's wrath. Hera saw through the disguise and requested the cow as a gift. Zeus could not refuse her. Hera entrusted Argus to watch Io day and night so she could not be changed back to her true form. Zeus then sent Hermes, messenger of the gods and god of thieves and trickery, to recover Io. Knowing that he could not escape detection from Argus' 100 eyes, Hermes began to play sleepy tunes on his flute and one by one Argus' eyes closed and he fell asleep. Hermes then cut off his head. When Hera found Argus, she removed his one-hundred eyes and placed them on the tail of her favorite bird, the peacock. So it seems Mako's would be a particularly Jovian sort of oath.

Rei's crack about saltpeter is that it was believed to be a sort of anti-aphrodisiac. It dampened desire. Luckily for Rei's grandfather, and the rest of the guys too, it doesn't really work.)


	12. Those Who Come By Night

Chapter 12 – Those Who Come By Night

Night brought with it a certain measure of calm, if not peace. Three senshi, doors and windows tightly locked with blinds and curtains firmly shut to keep out the unknown, slept fitfully, two dreaming of the far distant past and their leader tossing and turning, wondering why she couldn't. Their princess, though, with a ragged stuffed bunny snuggled under one arm and a black cat curled up at her feet, was sleeping the sleep of the angels, dreaming hopefully of a rosy future with her adorable Mamo-chan.

Her Mamo-chan, on the other hand, was not sleeping at all. Having slipped into his Tuxedo Kamen guise, he was leaping nimbly from rooftop to rooftop. Finally he reached the building he was searching for and scaled down the side of it like a human fly until he reached the tiny balcony he'd been searching for. There he waited until the light blinked off and then he waited some more until the moon was well in its nightly course. Finally he decided it was time.

Soundlessly sliding open the window, he gave thanks that it was a large one as tuxedos, even for superheroes, were not meant for clambering through tiny spaces. The window was actually almost as wide as the room itself. In the light of the moon he could see that a small bunk bed, bureau, desk and chair comprised its furnishings. Tuxedo Kamen flinched, feeling the fantods howling in his ear. None of his research had indicated his quarry had a roommate. Carefully he scanned the room.

A shaft of moonlight shone into the room over Tuxedo Kamen's head as the moon came out from behind a cloud. The gentle silvery light illuminated a face in the bottom bunk. He looked innocent as a cherub, eyes shut in slumber and soft dark golden locks tumbling around his face and onto the pillow like a halo. It was that very innocent expression that made a surge of rage and resentment bloom in Tuxedo Kamen's stomach. How dared a traitor sleep so soundly when he had caused nightmares for so many others?

He eased inside, listening for any hint of anything. Deep, regular breathing, punctuated by the odd soft snore was the only sound besides the soft humming of a computer. A glance at the monitor made him scowl blackly. If the screensaver, a compilation of lovingly rendered artist's images of Sailor Mars, wasn't a new addition, he'd eat his own top hat.

Once inside he let out his breath in a tiny, relieved puff. If the man had a roommate, he wasn't in tonight. Perfect. Sliding forward, he immediately stumbled over an untidy pile of recently acquired books on the Shinto faith that he hadn't seen stacked on the floor directly beneath the window.

The soft scuffling noise and muffled thump were all it took. The occupant of the lower bunk startled awake and sat bolt upright. A pulsating flash of blue-gold light filled the corner of the room. Behind his mask Mamoru flinched, feeling something in his chest resonate with the light.

Two warriors peered suspiciously at one another through the dim light.

"Who the hell are you?" demanded the blond man of his intruder as he tensed beneath his sheets and drew back further into the protective shadows, gripping a magicked dagger tightly in his fist.

"You have no rights to ask anything of us," Tuxedo Kamen hissed between his teeth with regal formality.

"Us?" the Warrior-King of the Far East asked, his lip curling in scorn. "I only see one of you breaking and entering, Tux Boy." The mention of the tuxedo made his brow furrow, an action which Tuxedo Kamen could just barely see.

"You," accused Jadeite, his eyes narrowing, "you're the one who carried off Jupiter. My friend is interested in some serious payback for that one, boy-o."

"Tell him anytime, anyplace," growled Kamen, not denying his culpability for a second. 'I will NOT let them hurt the senshi again.' After everything they had done for Serenity, protecting her, his protecting them from his former men was the least he could do.

"Look," Jadeite tried to be reasonable since from what he could see, it was way, way too AM to be getting into battles and he knew he could kiss his damage deposit farewell if they started anything in the little dorm room. "I don't know what your relationship is with her or the rest of the senshi, but trust me, it's going to be a lot better for your health if you just find someone else. Jupiter's totally spoken for and my friend is not going to budge on that. He's not understanding that way."

"I'd say that's not his choice," replied the tuxedo clad man, frowning. Jadeite's measured response, more in the nature of a friendly warning than any kind of threat, was completely unexpected. The blond man sounded so genuinely concerned that it was throwing him, but Tuxedo Kamen reminded himself firmly not to be taken in. If he'd learned anything over the years it was that evil could wear a thousand and one guises, the better to convince a body to let down his guard…and that was when it would strike.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded coldly.

"Well," Jadeite responded snidely, "I _was_ sleeping until someone rudely came in without knocking. How about you? Breaking and entering to supplement your dry cleaning budget for the fine threads, hmm?"

Tuxedo Kamen suffered a moment in which he seriously wanted to knock his own head against the wall in frustration, and for reasons he couldn't elucidate, he was pretty certain that it wasn't the first time. The blond man was slippery. He would clearly have to be more direct…and a lot more precise. He could do that.

"How could you betray your oath and your prince?" The tuxedo-clad warrior's words were a pure challenge. They hit their target with the impact of a bomb. The words 'your prince' hammered in Jadeite's brain over and over again.

"The prince? Endymion… How in the hell do you…?" sputtered Jadeite, feeling like he ought to leap at the chance for information from someone else, anyone else who knew of the Shitennou's lord. But suddenly the rest of the question filtered through to his still slightly sleep-fogged brain and Jadeite's countenance darkened to an ugly beet shade.

"Okay…," he snarled, flinging back the sheets, regardless of the chill, and leaping to his feet in one swift motion. "That's IT! How dare you accuse me of betraying my prince, you overdressed housebreaker?!" Reason was going to have to go hang. Jadeite wanted blood, or at least pain, for that insult.

"So you deny it?" taunted Tuxedo Kamen, brandishing his cane at the boxer-clad man and beckoning. "Oh under-clad one?"

"You're goddamned right, I deny it!" bellowed Jadeite, no longer caring if he woke the entire dormitory. He hurled a balled up pair of winter wool gloves from his nightstand at the figure near the window, counting it as fulfillment of the age-old requirement of slapping one's opponent in the face during a challenge of honor. A coffee mug followed after just for spite. The softer missile flew past Kamen's head and out the window, while the mug smashed against the wall, fortunately missing both the window and its intended target, who had ducked. One of Tuxedo Kamen's especially lethal type of rose was hurled, dart-like, into the opposite wall when Jadeite dodged. "And I'm going to rip you a new one for that insult, you sonofa…"

"Ah ah. Temper, temper. Next story you'll be trying to tell me is that you never betrayed Mars either." Again the words were a challenge. Tuxedo Kamen's lip was curled. 'Come on, you liar. Spill your guts in a fit of temper. Give me something I can work with!'

"Are you the one responsible for poisoning her mind against me?" howled an enraged Jadeite, lashing out with his dagger. The slash was parried by Kamen's cane, and both men felt the impact reverberate up their arms. The blade left an ugly gash in the cane's ebony lines.

"What lies have you spewed, you bastard, that my own soulmate thinks I'M a threat to her? What did you tell her? By Terra, I'll hang you by your own cape until you tell me every slanderous word you convinced her of," Jadeite continued to rant.

"I said nothing!" The tuxedo clad man danced back, trying to control the jolt of power that had raced back to him, for what his psychic sense had picked up in that brief instant of contact made no sense under the circumstances. He'd felt nothing that even remotely hinted at evil. Rage, yes, toward the entity that was Tuxedo Kamen, and confusion, but nothing malevolent. Not toward either Endymion or Mars. Yet he knew Mars would not lie about her memories. Jupiter, for her part, was too forthright a person to effectively pull off such a deception, even if she had some bizarre reason for doing so, which he knew she did not. Yet she too had confirmed Mars' story, at least in part. What in the name of Terra was going on?

'I've got to get out of here to think!' Tuxedo Kamen nimbly evaded another swift lunge by Jadeite, though it came disconcertingly close to making its mark, and sprang out the window into the night.

Suddenly lacking an opponent, Jadeite blinked rapidly and raced toward the window. "Where'd the penguin-suited bastard go?"

He could see nothing…not one thing to indicate where his foe had gone. Frantically, Jadeite looked in every direction, yet there was nothing. The mysterious masked man had vanished. His burning need for answers left unassuaged, he could only let out a howl, like a predator denied its prey and slam the window shut in a rather Mars-esque fit of pique. He wouldn't be sleeping for the rest of the night.

It was really only right that Jadeite's rest be disturbed, however, for none of the other Shitennou were sleeping. Though one was seriously considering dozing off as he half-listened to the other.

"Uh huh," Zarek mumbled periodically into his cell phone as Neil babbled on at great length. If there was anything that the man, in any of his incarnations, had cared about nearly as much as Endymion or Jupiter, it was, Zarek knew, his communion with the stars. And evidently the man had gotten a little drunk with the joy of his own reacquired power, consulting them for several very intense hours and he now needed to talk about it with someone. Zarek was the only available one. Yet another reason, he though, to put Neil's and Li…that is, Makoto's relationship back on course. Then she could listen, because for the most part the topic bored Zarek silly. It was so unscientific and vague.

How the seer was going to stay awake the next day, Zarek was not sure, since he was probably going to crash soon, but he figured it was not his problem, and he himself was used to operating on fairly little rest, so he let the man yammer on, not paying too terribly close attention. After all, there were far more interesting things going on in the immediate vicinity.

If Zarek just stretched up a bit in his chair, he could see through one of the windows the top of a charming gamine mop of blue-black hair. She was, he knew, perched on her work stool, bent industriously over her notes. If he stood, he could even see her whole face as she worked, occasionally blowing her bangs out of her eyes with an exasperated puff of breath and chewing on her soft, pink lower lip in concentration. Imaginings of that maltreated lip and how he would choose to soothe it helped Zarek rather pleasantly pass the time as Neil blathered on.

She was now busily peering through a microscope at fibers (or were they hairs? Zarek wondered) and other slides that she'd brought with her to the labs. He would have to investigate, he thought. She was working on matters with a focus and intensity that he could see were well beyond her normal meritorious habits, not to mention that she'd come in well after normal hours. So whatever it was, it was personally very important to her and she didn't want to share it with others. She was, he noticed, even using her mini computer…and that, he realized, meant senshi business. Interesting.

She did look, adorable, though. She'd even perched the cute glasses that he knew she didn't really need on her pert little nose. Once, months before, he'd asked her why she wore them when she didn't need to. She had replied that they got her in the proper frame of mind to work. His amused double entendre of, "So they get you in the mood?" and saucy wink had made her blush a fascinating shade of crimson, though he'd regretted the words as soon as he'd said them, for she'd darted away immediately thereafter.

He idly wondered what she would do if he were to come up behind her and kiss the creamy exposed nape of her neck. He sighed. The answer to that was most probably that she'd scream, startled out of her wits. Right before she decked him. She was a senshi, after all.

"Are you even listening to me?" Neil finally barked, having wound down enough to notice Zarek's blasé non-responses.

"Of course," he answered smoothly, exercising his talent for sifting the grain from the chaff that had served him so well through his years of schooling. "You got no further word on Kunzite except that he's closer than we think. You got no further word on Endymion…something about things being in flux. The outside threat is still hanging over the senshi. You want to tell your lady, but you think it's too great a shock right now. You need to tell your mother soon because if you don't, she'll fly over here and kill you when she does find out. So everything's probably going well except for the women. You know…the major source of trouble in your life _is_ women, my friend."

He smirked knowingly. Neil had to be grinding his back teeth. Sometimes it was so darned easy he just couldn't stop himself from tweaking the man's temper.

"Smug jerk," Neil snapped, unwittingly confirming Zarek's prediction.

"Look, Neil," Zarek pinched the bridge of his nose and prayed for patience. "I know it's hard, but you have to be patient with her. She's scared, mad, and, as I recall, she's always had a tendency toward unpredictability. Maybe you ought to stop chasing her, which only encourages her to flee. Maybe you ought to try getting her to come to you?"

"And just how am I supposed to do that, genius?"

"Well…you have her tiara, no?"

There was a slight cough followed by a moment of abashed stillness from Neil's end of the line. "Um…no," he finally answered. When Zarek remained silent, Neil hastened to explain. "I had to give it back to her. I was worried that pink freak's brothers would come back sometime, like he said they would, and she'd be completely defenseless. I can't always be there to protect her, so…"

"Let me say that, as someone who witnessed that little scene the other night, tiara or no tiara, powers or no powers, that woman is about as defenseless as a rabid badger," cut in Zarek, shaking his head.

Neil rumbled out a defensive growl that had the other man backtracking fast.

"Um…sorry. No offense meant. I just was saying that she's pretty capable of defending herself. I mean, hell, the info you asked me to dig up says that she got thrown out of more than one school for fighting when she was younger. Though, reading between the lines, I think that she was defending younger kids from bullies. But she was a little too effective at striking back and she didn't have parents to go to bat for her with the administration when the bullies' parents complained, so that's why she got bounced."

"That sounds like my Lita," sighed Neil, sounding as wistful as it was possible for a man with his gravely baritone to sound. "You know, even with the laws the way they were back when, I think it was easier then…"

"I know what you're thinking about and it won't work," Zarek insisted, shaking his head as he glanced back at Ami. "It wouldn't have been approved of then and it's just not done these days. Not to mention, it would make her mad as hell right now. I don't care if your people in this life are descended from wild and wooly Scottish Highlander types. You can't just drag her off over your saddle or…I guess in this case, your car."

The sound of a series of indistinct grumbling noises making their way through the phone made a smile curve Zarek's lips. "Look, I know how you feel, but…Waitaminute. Hold the phone."

Oblivious to Neil's protests, Zarek dropped his phone and hopped to his feet. Through the window he could see Ami had stopped her work, getting up and smiling welcomingly at someone, and her computer had, unsurprisingly, vanished. But from the angle he was at, he couldn't see who had come in.

Who else would be in at such an hour anyway? And why was Ami smiling at him that way? Poison green eyes flashed, displeased. He had no doubts whatsoever that it was a him that Ami was smiling at. The thought did not make for a pleasant or patient Zarek.

"Listen, Neil," muttered Zarek rudely when he again picked up his telephone. "I've got to go. Something's cropped up here. Whatever you do, get some sleep because if you don't, your woman won't even look twice at you. 'Cause as I recall, you always looked and acted like hell when you were sleep deprived."

He abruptly snapped shut his telephone, cutting off Neil's insulting rejoinder in mid-stream. Scooping up the soft lavender-blue colored coat and navy handbag that Ami had forgotten the night before, Zarek decided it was absolutely the perfect time to return said items and see who was receiving the gentle smile that should have been directed at him instead.

"…glad I could help, since it all affects my Hotaru too," he overheard a male voice saying as he pushed open the door to Ami's lab space. "Honored, really, under the circumstances."

"Well we appreciate any help you can give us, Doctor Tomoe." Ami answered softly, giving the distinguished professor's hand a gentle affirmative squeeze. "I've been testin…"

She broke off and glanced up as the door to the lab facilities squeaked loudly. "Oh, good evening, Veridian-san." She swallowed hard. "I thought I was alone in the labs tonight."

"You're not." His tone was intentionally deadpan, but he favored her with a mildly indulgent smile before turning an aggressive laser-eyed gaze on her companion. "Oh, Tomoe-san," he growled bluntly. "I didn't realize that you knew Ami-chan."

He had deliberately used the affectionate term, stepping neatly in front of Ami and shielding her from the view of the older man. It was, all in all, rather reminiscent of a buck cutting his chosen female from the herd, least another male encroach. Even the normally slightly absent-minded professor couldn't mistake it, though Ami did not notice in her upset at having been interrupted. Tomoe simply grinned, polishing his glasses.

"Oh, I've known Mizuno-san for some time now," he murmured experimentally, deciding to test the currents around him. "A fine girl and very bright. A promising future."

Zarek scowled in response…Ami's future was none of the man's business. Tomoe hid a smirk. Q.E.D. It was ironic, he thought, that the blond man's eyes were actually vivid green. If they hadn't been before, they certainly were now.

"Was there something we could do for you, Veridian-san?" interjected Ami, peeking around his shoulder and giving Tomoe an apologetic little shrug. The white-haired man nodded almost imperceptibly. Although he understood the little scholar's urgency regarding the work she'd called him in on, he was enjoying the show playing out before him. Theater was fun, wherever one found it, after all.

Zarek turned and for a brief unguarded second when he looked down at Ami, everything he felt for her showed plainly on his face. Realizing that Ami hadn't even noticed, Souichi Tomoe felt a sudden tinge of pity for the jealous younger man.

Ami rather reminded him of himself as a youth, so concerned with science that he rarely noticed what was going on around him. Fortunately, he reflected, a fellow researcher named Keiko had either the good fortune or, more likely, the good aim to upend a beaker of serum on him which had forcibly gotten his attention. She'd asked him out to dinner by way of apologizing for the destruction of his tie (the beaker's contents had permanently dyed its once understated burgundy silk a strange, blotchy heliotrope color) and that had been their first date.

They'd been married about a year later, and two years after that, Hotaru had come along. They'd been blissfully happy until his lab explosion, which had killed his sweet Keiko and wounded Hotaru.

That had been the start of the period of darkness and confusion, not all of which was clear to him even after the explanations that had been given afterward. Probably that memory loss was a mercy, he thought. Since he'd awoken in hospital to find the tall, mysterious green-haired woman standing over him, an infant instead of thirteen-year old Hotaru in her arms, he preferred especially to remember the good times. He felt he'd experienced a few lifetimes worth of darkness already.

He could never forget, though, that it was his Keiko who had first drawn him from the darkness within himself and kept himself from completely losing himself in solitude and science. Mizuno-san could use someone who would do the same, he thought. Souichi was amused to note that it appeared she already had someone who was more than willing and able to do the job.

If Souichi Tomoe was feeling kindly disposed toward the young man before him, however, said young man was not reciprocating the feeling. He was glaring at the man he considered a possible rival, daring him to say a word about his presence in Ami's lab.

Did Ami not realize that Tomoe-san was far too old for her? Zarek wondered furiously, his leafy green eyes snapping. Did she not see how ridiculously inappropriate it was for her to have called him to meet her at the labs so late at night? Princess Amilene of the Mercurian Kingdom would have had more sense. Had had more sense. She'd given him an excruciatingly polite little set-down when he'd suggested something similar during the Silver Millennium.

Normally Zarek was not one to judge. Gaia knew that he had been the topic of some discussion himself, his looks being rare and a little too 'pretty' for some people to deal with rationally, accusing him of being gay among other ridiculous notions. And everyone knew that academics could be eccentric at times. But the things he had heard about Professor Tomoe made him question where eccentric ended and crackpot began. If the rumors were true, he'd even played games of Twister in the lab and strung a Slip and Slide down one of the staircases once, frozen it, and tried tobogganing downhill a breakneck speed. Plus, he was a widower with a child. All of which made him, as far as Zarek was concerned, an unacceptable interest for his innocent Ami.

"Mizuno-san," Tomoe grinned, deciding to throw Zarek a bone. "I know you're anxious to get started, but I really ought to read through your notes and check the samples, and frankly, I do that best on my own. Perhaps you'd like to go get a coffee and properly caffeinate yourself…maybe get something to eat since I think we're going to be pulling an all-nighter here. I'm sure young…Veridian-san, wasn't it?" he glanced at the young man, whose irritable gaze had gone blank with sudden shock. "I'm sure he'd be willing to escort you to the all night restaurant a few blocks over. Because, of course, it's not safe for a young woman such as yourself to go alone."

Tomoe fought the urge to laugh at his own words. If it wasn't safe for a woman such as Ami, he knew, then it wasn't safe for anyone. But it was a good story anyway…and appreciated, he could see, by the young blond gentleman, who had suddenly grinned in gratitude as if he'd been handed a priceless gift. Which, of course, he had. Zarek Veridian was suddenly much more inclined to give one Professor Tomoe the benefit of the doubt.

Unaccountably, Ami blushed. "Well, I don't know…"

Zarek simply held out her coat for her to slip on, waiting expectantly. Tomoe turned away toward the microscope, dismissing them both with an airy wave of his hand. Left with very little choice, Ami sighed and slid into the comforting warmth of her own coat and then took the delicate handbag from him.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" She glanced upward at Zarek, who merely shook his head. "Thank you for keeping an eye on these. I had to leave so fast the other night, that I completely forgot them."

He bit back the urge to laughingly say, "I know, Mercury-chan", flashed her his most charming smile and simply slid an arm around her trim waist, ushering her out of the room before she could think up another protest.

As the young couple left the labs, Professor Tomoe grinned absently, sliding a pair of headphones from the pocket of his lab coat and popping them in place. There was lots of work to be done. He punched the button on his CD player and started singing along, badly off key but with impressive timing, to the showtune that had begun to play. He made a few name substitutions along the way, just because.

"Brush up your Mendel…start quoting him now…Brush up your Pasteur…and the women you will wow…"

(Author's Notes: The song Tomoe is murdering is 'Brush up your Shakespeare' from the musical Kiss Me Kate. Just thrown in because I just love the theatre and Tomoe is wacky enough that he'd probably enjoy it too. Substituting the names of famous scientists in for Shakespeare, of course. :-)


	13. Don't Stand So Close to Me

Chapter 13 – Don't Stand So Close to Me

Minako sighed, resting for a moment on her broom and casting her eyes upward toward the heavens. Rei's ancestral shrine was just so large and she felt like she'd been sweeping forever. She had no idea how Rei and her grandfather managed normally, even with Yuichiro around to help while Rei was at school. It was so busy.

She supposed that if any sort of silver lining could be found in the current dangerous situation, it was that it had really brought the Inner Senshi back together again as a complete team. The Hikawa Jinja hadn't played host to so many of them at once in more than a year. Yes, they'd fought together against the wraiths, but it just hadn't been the same what with all of them off in college. Even at the same school they'd been scattered, like pieces of a puzzle. But now here she was again, helping out with Rei's chores and taking deliveries, Rei was still fighting with her sacred fire, determined to regain her visions even if it half killed her, Usagi was busy helping Rei's grandfather prepare for shrine rituals, and even Makoto, sporting a Cleopatra wig from Minako's costume closet to hide her now very green locks, was assisting Yuichiro in selling charms and fortunes to an eager public. Their pieces were being put back together once again.

Makoto's green hair was, of course, the reason for the only absent Inner. Ami, Minako supposed, was still working on figuring matters out. She'd promised to call the second she heard anything. Idly, Minako twirled a lock of her own hair around her finger, gazing pensively at the color. She couldn't explain it, but it DID look more golden than it had previously, like she'd had glorious highlights put in. Poor Mako-chan, she thought, had not been so lucky. Though, she reflected, the green tint of Makoto's hair hadn't seemed to put off the male population any more than Ami's blue had.

As Minako lowered her gaze from the puffy clouds to the ground again, she happened to glance down the long flight of stone stairs. Hopefully she would not have to sweep those as well. Though, with Rei giving the orders…

The sight of a man in a black uniform just beginning to ascend the stairs at street level made her groan aloud. "Oh sweet kami, not another delivery."

She'd been fielding delivery men all morning. Bright and early the first one had shown up with a delivery of a single exquisite Casablanca lily for Rei, but no note. Seeming bemused, Rei had accepted that one personally, trying not to notice when the deliveryman practically panted at the sight of her. She'd brushed the delicately ruffled white bloom against her cheek and breathed deeply of its sweet fragrance.

But when the single perfect blood-red rose had appeared a half an hour later, Rei had begun to lose her smile. When the stalk of purple hyacinth (which Makoto had helpfully identified, along with imparting the information that in the language of flowers it was supposedly a plea for forgiveness) arrived, however, Rei had gone into a rage and closeted herself in the fire room, refusing to budge. Makoto, embarrassed to have sparked the incident, snuck off to help Yuichiro, and Minako had been stuck fielding the floral deliverymen, who came at regular half hour intervals.

Since Minako figured it was a crime against nature to get rid of such lovely flowers, even if they were from an enemy, she'd gotten a vase from Rei's grinning grandfather, and had been seeing that the flowers ended up in water. By this time there was quite a bouquet and it looked like there would be another new addition momentarily.

"Between the drooling over us and the stairs, that poor delivery man is going to have a heart attack before the day is out," she murmured to herself. "The florist needs to cut him a break." She called loudly to Rei, who she knew could hear her through the thin wall screens. "Looks like you've got another one, Rei-chan!"

The hidden miko let out a screech of frustration that had Minako rolling her eyes. It wasn't like Rei was actually dealing with the situation herself. If anyone had reason to screech, it was Minako herself. She was the one forced to deal with the slavering floral deliverymen. And while Minako was no stranger to male admiration, she couldn't help but think that things were getting more than a little out of hand now. It was downright disturbing being transformed without warning into a sex goddess, and that, coming from a Venusian, was a decidedly odd perspective…but there it was just the same.

At least, she reflected with gratitude, prolonged exposure to the senshi seemed to blunt the odd new aphrodisiac effect. Yuichiro was no longer acting like he wanted to toss one of them over his shoulder and carry her off, and consequently, Makoto was no longer having to threaten to beat him to death with Minako's broom. And Rei's grandfather was finally acting no more lecherous than normal. Some things were only relatively better.

Minako took another quick glance downward. The man was already well up the stairs, moving fast. She looked harder. The sun was in her eyes, but the man's hair, what little of it she could see under the cap he wore, was very fair. "And it looks like he may be delivering this one in person.

"I'll kill him!" Rei screamed from within, causing a few overseas visitors to the shrine to look quite startled and warily inch away across the courtyard. "I swear by the holy flame, I'll do it! Very painfully and with extreme malice."

Minako blushed, waving a hand. "The shrine's head priestess is conducting an exorcism, trying to drive away evil spirits," she murmured as a cover. The tourists, pacified by the explanation, which Minako wasn't even sure they'd understood, nodded and drifted away to buy souvenir charms and fortunes and take snapshots of the famous temple's gardens and buildings.

Once they were out of earshot, she called back to Rei. "You might want to rein in your homicidal tendencies as long as the tourists are here, Pyro. Because you're scaring them…"

As a hand descended on her shoulder without warning, Minako jumped and let out a cry of alarm. She whirled in a defensive posture, brandishing the bamboo and willow broom like a staff. A cloud of dust rose as the broom's head smacked into a navy blue peacoat. A moment later the makeshift weapon was wrenched from her grasp.

"You really are trying to kill me, aren't you?"

Minako flinched, looked up, and kept on looking up…way up. But even as she looked, she knew the worst had come to pass. The timbre of the stern, no-nonsense voice was unmistakable. She could still hear it threatening to arrest her for disturbing the peace, inciting a riot, and possible kidnapping, and even worse, threatening to call her mother. And that had been before she'd accidentally plowed headlong into him later that night, knocking them both momentarily senseless before she'd fled.

It was the silver-haired cop from Valentines night.

He was staring down at her, his pale grey eyes glittering in frustration. He had the broom in a death grip, seemingly afraid she was going to bruise him again, or at least further damage the starchy perfection of his uniform. Minako suddenly wished she had a hole to crawl into for a few years.

She forced a sickly smile. "Welcome to the Hikawa Jinja, officer. How may I assist you today?"

Just then Rei slammed the sliding door to one side. The prayer beads in her hand were clutched as if she was going to garrote someone with them. "Where is the bastard?" she snarled furiously. "He's going to die at my hands this time!"

Minako buried her face in her palms. "Rei-chan," she hissed as the police officer before her stiffened at the mention of possible murder. "It's not _him_. It's the police"

Startled into silence, Rei froze, her face going crimson as her robes and the highlights in her hair as her mouth dropped open. Horrified, she withdrew, slamming the door shut again and leaving Minako to try to explain matters to the police officer she'd just unwittingly assaulted. She was going to end up behind bars soon. She just knew it.

"Is there something I should know about going on here?" inquired Assistant Police Inspector Kazuhiko Kane in forbidding tones, silver brows knitting together. He was deadly serious. The furious raven/red-haired woman had looked more than capable of committing homicide, and he wasn't about to let the matter go without finding out what was going on.

"Heh…" Minako tried to laugh it off, though she was somewhat less than convincing in her light tone. "Just…um…men troubles. Rei-chan didn't really mean what she said. She wouldn't hurt anyone. Really."

'Much anyway', Minako mentally added, also mentally crossing her fingers to ward off the lie. "She's just a little upset right now. Just a kind of…lover's spat. It'll work itself out." She waved her hand toward the flowers, as if they would speak for themselves. The police officer didn't need to know that Rei had actually had nothing to do with keeping the blooms around. "It's nothing for the police to concern themselves with, though."

A sudden thought occurred to Minako, and she drew back, her azure eyes going wide in alarm. "What are you doing here today, officer? You can't mean to arrest me now. It wouldn't be right after all this time…"

Her voice had pitched upward toward the hysterical and she missed the faint hint of warmth that warmed the icy gaze of the police officer before her. Only someone who was very intimately familiar with him would have spotted the change. In spite of his foreboding, by-the-book expression Kane was very amused. He firmly believed that everybody had at least one cross in life which he or she must bear. Recently it seemed that the antics of this scatterbrained blonde were his.

"You did hit me with a broom," he pointed out helpfully, his eyebrows snapping together as he noted the large, smutty dust mark that now marred his blue jacket. He whacked at the mark, brushing away as much of the grey stain as possible.

"But I didn't mean to," yelped Minako, having melodramatic visions of herself clapped in handcuffs and being dragged down to the police station, doing a perp walk, having to throw herself on the mercy of the court, and maybe even winding up in prison. She knew the man before her was the sort of stuffed vest, stick-in-the-muck, straight-arrow-to-the-extreme cop who'd do it to her too. She could still hear him lecturing her. Only the intercession of his superior, who had, luckily for her, turned out to be an old boyhood friend of her father's, had saved her skin on Valentine's Night. "I only reacted because you scared me."

"You also knocked me down the other night and left me lying there," he pointed out helpfully…and a bit accusingly. "You didn't even check to see if I'd been hurt or had hit my head."

Guilt assailed her. They had collided very hard due to her carelessness. She'd even lost consciousness for just a second. "Sorry," she said, sincerely apologetic. "I was trying to get to a friend's house on an emergency matter," she offered by way of an excuse. It wasn't much of an explanation being that she couldn't tell him that she spent nights fighting monsters while in a miniskirt, but it was the truth as far as it went.

"An emergency?" he asked skeptically, his gaze flickering lightly over the sunny curtain of her hair and the perky bow that held her mane in place. "A real one? Not a fashion crisis or something of that sort"

"YES!" she insisted, sniffing with sudden irritation. As if she was some dingy blonde who didn't know an emergency from a non-emergency. As if! She thought back over the years. Some of THOSE emergencies she'd been through would have turned the man's hair prematurely white…if it hadn't already been so.

"I see." He shook his head, arching a supercilious (at least in Minako's opinion) brow. "Well, you really ought to be more careful, Aino-san."

She glared at him. It wasn't what he'd said, but his tone that was objectionable. "I will," she retorted in clipped tones.

Kane looked surprised for a moment, opened his mouth, then shut it without a word.

Minako rolled her eyes. "Well, if you're not here to arrest me, officer, then what are you doing here? We're very busy here today, so…" She let the sentence trail of meaningfully. As far as she was concerned, if he had no official business, then he should scamper along on his way and let her get on with temple chores.

And the sooner the better.

"You know," Kane said suddenly, running his intense silver-grey gaze over her robes, "when your sorority sisters told me you could be found here, I didn't believe them at first. A girl who could throw a crazed party like you did…you just didn't seem like the miko type to me. Still don't," –he paused, his gaze moving from the honey blond top of her hair to her sandal-clad feet– "…although, you do look the part and you seem to have an idea of what you're doing…"

"How dare you?" Minako bristled, interrupting his musings. "I'll have you know, I've been intimate friends with the shrine keeper's granddaughter since I was fourteen years old." And then some, she mentally tacked on. "I've been doing this sort of thing since junior high. I know all the dances and songs and how to do all the miko rituals...like…like I know the back of my palm," she finally sputtered.

She did too. Rei had taught them all well over the years.

Kane grinned. "You mean hand."

"What-ever," growled Minako, not willing to be corrected by HIM. She couldn't help but wonder at his ability to get under his skin so easily…as if he mattered or something. She never cared when Rei or Mamoru or Ami corrected her over a malapropism. Finally she tossed her head in a cascade of silken golden strands and turned smartly on her heel. It wasn't as if she gave a hang about his opinion. And let him keep the filthy broom. It wasn't as if the temple didn't have others.

A hand with a grip as unyielding as stone landed on her shoulder, preventing her from storming off in high dudgeon. "One moment, Aino-san."

She let out a gusty sigh and whirled. "What is it?"

"I believe you left this behind in our little…crash. I thought I'd return it to you. It looked expensive."

In the sunlight the gold trinket in his hand, despite its broken chain, glittered richly and the heart-shaped lilac-pink stone mounted within shone rosily. Minako blinked at the dazzling sight. It was her Kappa necklace. Although new, when it had disappeared on Valentine's Night, she'd given it up as lost forever.

"Oh," she muttered, vaguely embarrassed. "I guess it must've caught on your uniform buttons." She made a swipe for the piece of jewelry as she said curtly, "Thank you."

Somehow, the jewelry evaded her grasp and she scowled as he smiled blandly. How she'd missed, she had no idea, but it was aggravating. _He_ was aggravating.

"What's your rush? You should identify it properly first," he hinted. "Are there any distinctive markings you can tell me about to prove that it's yours?"

Minako's scowl deepened. "The rush is that the stone's not meant for day wear. The color can fade in direct sunlight. And you know it's mine, otherwise you wouldn't have returned it to me. It's even got my name engraved on the mounting."

Kane flipped the necklace in the air, catching it a split second later before she could make another grab for the piece. "Bi-na-su," he sounded out, using a somewhat archaic reading of the characters etched on the backing of the stone before doing that eyebrow arching thing that made Minako feel like developing a twitch of her own. "Venus?"

"Minako. Mi-na-ko," she hissed acidly, holding out her palm with clear intent. Under her breath she mumbled, "Obnoxious baka."

She knew he heard when his eyes narrowed faintly, but he maintained an otherwise controlled bland façade. Holding it up again, Kane fingered the faceted pink stone. "I've never seen a gem this exact color before. It's a little bit pink, but also a little bit purple-grey, I think. It fades in the light you said? How odd. What's it called?"

"K…ite something. Ken…zite maybe," Minako sputtered, her color running high. "I don't remember anymore, but it doesn't matter. What does matter is that you're going to ruin it if you're not careful and that thing wasn't cheap, so hand it over right now or you're guilty of stealing my property." She crossed her arms over her chest grumpily. "I'd hate to have to report you to your superiors, officer."

Kenzite wasn't right. Kane knew that…he didn't know why he was sure of that fact, but he was as certain of that as he was that he was the youngest Assistant Police Inspector on Tokyo's police force and that one Aino Minako had the most gorgeous, albeit pink face he'd seen in all his years.

He froze. And where the hell had that thought come from?

Just then the gem seemed to fracture the sunlight into a thousand and one rosy shining sparklers, bathing them both in its radiant glow. Kane flinched and froze in the shimmering light as the word 'Kunzite' whispered through his brain like a sultry but fleeting kiss.

Minako lunged.

"Gotcha!" She crowed triumphantly as she snatched the piece from his grasp and the little trinket disappeared protectively up one flowing sleeve of her kimono. Her property back in hand, she aimed a cross little kick at the shins of the police officer, who was standing stock still, and pronounced. "I really do not like you, officer. Good day, sir!" before she marched away grumbling, slamming the temple door behind her as she went to answer the telephone that had begun shrilling away inside.

Somehow the blonde's mildly spoken rebuke and then chill dismissal seemed to sting more than any other woman's cry of, "I hate your everlasting guts, you horrible pig! Choke on it and die!" would have. Kane blinked wildly as he regained his senses, his grip tightening so hard on the broomstick that its bamboo shaft cracked. He was left with only one remaining question.

"What exactly just happened here?"

(Author's Note: 100,000 What's My Line points to anyone who gets the joke behind the title of this chapter)


	14. The Play's The Thing

Chapter 14 – The Play's The Thing

"Rei-chan! TELEPHONE!"

A fuming Minako stood, hand clapped over the receiver, and bellowed at the top of her lungs. She was tapping one foot in agitation. Why Rei hadn't gotten the telephone, she didn't know. "It's some guy!"

"I TOLD YOU! I'm not taking calls from men!" Rei bellowed back to her. "Is growing all that extra-blond stuff on your head these days making you lose your hearing or just making you as ditzy as Usagi!"

Well that was gratitude for you!

Minako slapped the telephone down on the table with a snarled, "One minute please," then went to extract Rei from her fiery hidey-hole if she had to drag the other woman out by her two-toned hair.

She flung open the door to Rei's inner sanctum and caught the other girl by the shoulder, spinning her around on the tatami mat-covered floor. "I have been doing unpaid slave labor all morning and dealing with the cops too, thanks to your little outburst, and I do not have time to play message girl for you, Rei-chan. It's some guy…" –she jabbed a French manicured finger in Rei's face, cutting off the other woman's protest before she could even start to voice it– "…and he wants to know why you're not at some big-deal rehearsal. He also said something about a concert and it being a major part of your grade this term. If you insist on not talking to him, I can just hang up. But I'm not taking messages."

Minako watched with some satisfaction as the angry color drained from Rei's face, leaving her wan and pale. "I am such a baka!" snapped Rei. "I can't believe I completely forgot about the rehearsal. Baka! Baka! Baka!" With a flutter of carmine and dove-colored robes, she was up from her kneeling position and running toward the telephone in seconds, leaving Minako standing there rolling her eyes.

What seemed like mere moments later, a completely changed Hino Rei was sprinting down the jinja's steps, a heavy garment bag slung over her shoulder and her hair fluttering out behind her like a silken banner. As she made it to street level, she elbowed her way through a crowd of camera-toting, map perusing tourists, skidded past a slow moving gaggle of old women on their way to an afternoon tai chi class, and hotfooted it toward the college. So intent was she on her purpose never noticed she'd acquired a handsome blond shadow until, just steps from her goal, he cut in front of her, arms open wide.

It was the last thing she'd expected and, had he not been prepared, the force of their crash probably would have knocked them both down. He, however, caught her shoulders cushioning and absorbing the force of the impact which hurtled her into his arms where he knew she belonged.

"Sorry," she yelped reflexively as she collided with the man she believed was simply an unfortunate random pedestrian.

"Rei," Jed said with unusual soberness, ignoring her automatic apology. He stroked her cheek gently before returning his hand to her shoulder. "We have got to talk."

Realizing just who held her, Rei's pansy purple eyes first widened in shock, then narrowed dangerously and she gave him a shove. "I don't have the time for this. Let go or suffer!"

"No," Jed replied implacably, holding fast to her as she wriggled temptingly in his embrace. Though he stubbornly refused to step aside, he couldn't help the tender but heated look in his eyes as he gazed on her. Gaia but she was stunning. And if she didn't stop rubbing against him like that… He swallowed hard, then grated out hoarsely, "This is important, Firebird."

'So is my grade!' Rei thought acidly, grinding her teeth. He had no right to look so…so…eminently kissable while he was holding her back from her goal. Or to hold her at all. 'I'm late!!!'

"I am not having this discussion now," she announced in the ringing tones of a queen to a lowly serf. Re-tightening her grip on her garment bag, she jerked a knee violently upward, though the fire flash in her gaze telegraphed her actions and Jed leapt back just enough to save his manhood. Quicker than most would have been able to follow, Rei hooked a small foot behind his ankle and he stumbled backward, completely off balance. Jed fell heavily, landing on the cracked concrete at her feet with a stifled oath. Her destination now within arm's reach and her freedom at hand, Rei leapt nimbly over his sprawled legs and bolted for the college theater's side door. Flinging it open, she disappeared within.

"Dammit," growled Jed darkly, first rubbing his painfully bruised thigh and then his now aching backside for good measure. "Why does she always have to go for the balls?" he demanded, shaking a fist at the sky. "I could have gone for a cute little good-natured thing like Mercury-hime, but noooooo…"

In spite of his heated words, though, he knew very well that it had to be his Firebird and only her. From the first time he'd seen the elegant Aresian princess glaring down her patrician nose at him (a true feat since he stood considerably taller than she, even when she wore her trademark crimson heels), there'd been no one else for him. He would have been bored senseless in no time by someone without the fire to challenge him, and the seemingly bloodless, courteous to a fault Mercurian princess simply hadn't the passion (though he grudgingly supposed Zoisite would disagree) that drew him to his Firebird.

Grimly Jed picked himself up and followed. He was determined to have it out with her, and if it meant following his fiery little termagant into Hell itself, then he would do it. So this was nothing. In fact, a part of him couldn't help but reflect that it was rather appropriate that this meeting would take place at a theater. What with the legendary fights and the tempestuous romance, their relationship always had been something of a grand drama.

"Grandma would've loved it," he muttered under his breath, pushing open the side door.

A few dim work lights led him down a shadowy corridor and he looked around curiously. He'd never been backstage at a theater before. It was larger then he had expected, but cluttered heavily with pieces of old scenery and bits and pieces of props and costumes that had been stashed wherever a body could find room for them. Looped ropes and cables which were, he assumed, for the lights and stage curtains hung above his head like lianas in a tropical forest. It smelled of greasepaint and dusty canvas cloth and the oil for the rope pulleys, and overlaying it all was a faint mustiness of a building closed up for too long.

Carefully he picked his way in the direction of the voices he could hear but not yet put faces too, but froze when one called out to him. "Who are you?"

A harried young man with a clipboard and the all black garb of a stage ninja was pointing a pen at him accusingly. "I've never seen you around before. You're not supposed to be he…"

"I'm with Hino Rei," Jed cut in, flashing what he hoped was winning grin and bobbing a bow. "Sorry, but she said I could watch."

The smooth lie made the young stagehand's eyes widen behind his glasses and then he let out a long, low, and very impressed whistle. "You're with Hino-san, eh? Good luck. You're gonna need it."

Jed couldn't help but smile ruefully as he unobtrusively rubbed his backside again. "I see you've dealt with her before."

The stagehand rolled his eyes, more than answer enough. He jabbed his pen in the direction of a door that Jed had not noticed in the darkness. "If you want to watch, you can do so a lot more comfortably from the seats. Just through there and keep quiet. As long as you're quiet, I don't suppose anyone will mind."

The young man paused in reflection. "Heck, they probably won't even notice you. They're having a crisis now anyway. A few of the important singers…the other one from Hino-san's number, actually, were in a car accident last night. In fact, Hino-san's partner reportedly broke his jaw. So she doesn't have the other half of her duet and everyone's in a tizzy because this was supposed to be a dress rehearsal and the performance is…well, now her number's all messed up."

Jed's brows drew together as he frowned. "No understudy?"

"Same car," answered the chatty stagehand with a speaking shrug. "And it didn't help matters any that she was late." The man shot Jed a measuring look that seemed to imply he might know something about just why Rei was late. Jed found himself bristling at the thinly veiled implication. Not that he cared for himself…hell, he only wished it was true, but Rei's reputation was another matter altogether. No stupid little stage ninja was supposed to be speculating on his princess' private life.

"But they'll sort something out," continued the oblivious stagehand. "They always do. After all…"

"The show must go on?" interjected Jed a bit harshly, knowing he'd answered right when the stagehand grinned at him.

With a wave and a nod the young man was gone off down the corridor, checking off items on his clipboard and muttering to himself. Thinking that Rei wasn't the only one capable of picking up her cues, Jed pushed through the door that had been indicated to him and made his way to a seat, in the front row. With any luck and with stage lights on, she wouldn't even be able to see him there. And after she was done with what was obviously a very important school function, then he'd pin her down for their chat.

Rei was no where in sight, but he could hear her now, arguing with someone.

"It's the only possible solution," she was saying, her tone hovering just under a yell. "It's the only one that the orchestra can play as well and that I've practiced enough that I can do it as a solo instead. I know you didn't want to do it this close to Valentine's Day, but we've simply got…no…choice."

With a rustle of skirts, a transformed Rei stepped out from the wings, rubbing her temple in exasperation as if she had a headache.

Jed stared transfixed, catapulted back to the Silver Millennium in the blink of an eye. In that moment Crown Princess Reina of Mars lived once again.

Rei was resplendent in a heavy gown of what appeared to be rich violet silk, rather Renaissance in style, shot through with gold and trimmed exquisitely with pearls and garnet red stones and ribbon with a pattern of golden leaves. A pert Juliet cap of golden beads was perched high on her head, its point coming forward to dangle a single teardrop shaped amethyst bangle on her forehead. A soft cloud of gold veiling dangled from the cap, misting her raven and burgundy highlighted mane with a warm sheen. Jed had no idea how she'd managed to change her clothes so swiftly, but he knew she couldn't possibly look more breathtaking. In fact he was almost holding his breath to hold onto the vision of the princess who had loved him.

Impatiently Rei hitched up her skirts so that she could move more quickly. "Look at it this way, professor," she was saying to a fussy looking, myopic older man who was trying hard to get away. "We won't even have to change the set and my costume will still work. It's even from the same show. I can improvise something easily enough. We can even come up with something to surprise them. It's perfect."

"Oh all right, Hino-san. All right," he finally agreed, giving in to what could not be helped and the will of a much stronger personality than his own. "We'll do it your way. I'll have them play all five choruses." The fine arts professor bustled away for a word with the musicians, wondering not for the first time what possessed him to stay in his job.

In spite of himself, Jed chuckled softly, been there and done that thoughts flitting through his mind.

With the chatter on stage and the trill of instruments there was no reason why Rei should have heard him, but she did, as if attuned to the slightest sound of his voice. She outwardly betrayed the knowledge of his presence, though, by only a slight stiffening of her spine as she moved to a spot upstage. Though if her sailor crystal had been capable of granting wishes as was Usagi's ginzuishou, only a mere pile of smoking ashes would have been sitting in Jed's seat.

A hush settled over the theater and then the music began to play. In spite of knowing the need for their discussion, Jed nestled into his chair, temporarily willing to wait and eager to hear Rei sing. Long ago…a lifetime ago, she had sung for the gods in temple rites, but she had also once sung for him alone, her sweet voice strong and clear and altogether lovely.

Death and rebirth and a thousand years had done nothing whatsoever to mute either her rich voice or her magnetic stage presence. Sliding into shrewish character, Rei began to sing…with gusto.

"I hate men! I can't abide them even now and then." Rei tossed her head coltishly, Kate-ishly, kicking aside a wooden stool with a violent clatter and crossing her arms over her chest defiantly. It was truly amazing the feeling she managed to wring out of the words, despite the fact that they weren't even in her native tongue. Still, the battle of the sexes was universal and Mars never backed down from a battle.

"Then ever marry one of them, I'd rest a virgin rather, for husbands are a boring lot that only give you bother." She flashed a sly smile out toward her special 'audience', wondering if he was enjoying the performance. "Of course, I'm awfully glad that mother had to marry father. Still…I hate men!"

Jed suddenly sat bolt upright, fuming as he heard the special emphasis she'd laid on the last line. That little minx! She knew he was there. As sure as he was a natural blond, he knew she knew.

He was right.

Rei knew it was petty to bait him so, but she just couldn't seem to help herself. Ever since the man had reappeared in her life, she hadn't had a single moment's peace. She could feel the haunting, watchful presence of those azure eyes even when they weren't there. Painful memories and sultry dreams and dreams that might have been memories kept her constantly on edge and she couldn't forgive him for it. Just by the very fact of his breathing, he was driving her insane, but if she was going to go crazy, she wasn't going alone. She was only afraid it was going to be a short trip.

She was on a roll as she continued, striding boldly, with arms swinging, across the stage as she sang. "Of all the types of men I've met in our demo-cracy, I hate the most the athlete with his manner bold and brassy." She paused to tug at one of the strands of her hair as if contemplating it, then thumped her own breast. "He may have hair upon his chest, but sister, so has Lassie! Oh, I hate men!"

Jed glared, raking his fingers through his own tumbled golden waves. That 'brassy' comment was getting personal, not to mention the canine crack. And he knew worse was coming.

Though Zarek and Neil would have laughed themselves to death had they known and Jed sooner had his fingernails pulled out than admit it before them, he was not unfamiliar with the theater. His grandmother, having been a legendary beauty and a Ziegfeld showgirl in her youth, had a passion for the theater, musicals in particular, and she had dragged her only grandson to every local playhouse, musical theater and light opera performance she could find until he was old enough to protest. By that time, though, he had come to appreciate the works for their own sake. He was definitely familiar with this show and this song in particular. Quickly Jed mentally ran through the lyrics to see what was coming next...then he winced.

Rei paused to catch her breath, wondering if she had the acting chops to pull off the next part. What the hell, she finally thought. Why not?

"Avoid the trav'ling salesman though a tempting gent he may be," she sang as she sauntered merrily across the stage. "From China he will bring you _jade_…" she paused and jerked her head defiantly, making it clear that it was definitely personal before she continued. "…and perfume from Araby. But don't forget 'tis he who'll have the fun and thee the baby…." Rei staggered back against a prop table and clenched it hard, bending backward and squatting as if a woman bearing down in the throws of giving birth. The last line, predictable was it was, was delivered as if howled through teeth gritted in labor. "Oh I hate men!"

A wicked smile crossed Rei's face as she launched into the next bit, knowing it would drive the knife in a little bit harder. Suck it up, Jadeite, you murderer, she thought venomously. It's no more than you deserve! And you too, father…and every other bastard who's ever broken a woman's heart!

"I hate men! They should be kept like piggies in a pen." Taking the bit fully in her teeth, she all but skipped downstage until she was right where she figured he would be. She only wished the bright stage lights weren't so blinding. She would have paid ridiculous amounts of her father's wealth to see his face just then. The general audience would never know the double meaning behind the words. But a certain arrogant ass of a king-general would understand perfectly, she knew.

"You may be wooed by Jack the Tar, so charming and so chipper. But if you're wooed by Jack the Tar, be sure that you're the skipper. For Jack the Tar can go too far," Rei paused again, lifted an invisible dagger and plunged it into her chest, then staggered against the velvet curtain, 'dying' melodramatically. "Remember Jack the Ripper?" she asked, sneering broadly, then launched into the last line. "Oh, I hate men!"

That was it! She'd pushed him too far!

For any man who could call himself such, there were limits to patience. He could only be pushed so far before pushing back. Hino Rei had just shoved past those limits with all the grace of a soldier firing off the first shots of a war and now her challenge had to be answered or he could no longer call himself a man.

In one swift motion, Jed was out of his seat and had vaulted up onto the stage, startling the heck out of folks on the wings, though the musicians played on without missing a beat. He caught Rei in a single athletic bound before she could flee and clapped a broad hand over her mouth, bursting into his own clipped variation of the song's infamous final lines, his azure eyes burning with an intense blue flame to match her own element.

"Of all she's read, alone in bed, from A to Zed about 'em, since love is blind, then from the mind, all womankind should rout 'em." Practically seeing the smoke begin to pour from her ears, Jed smirked challengingly at the blazingly furious young woman who was staring full daggers at him. It was the taunting little smirk that had always and ever made Rei absolutely see red. "But, ladies," he continued, sounding surprisingly polished as a singer, "you must answer true. What would you do without 'em?"

And without another word, as the instrumental section soared into the rafters, he bent her startled form backward and crushed her siren red lips in a scorching kiss that seemed to make her bones melt. The demanding lip-lock curled not only Rei's toes, but those of every other young woman present and waiting her turn to go onstage. And for a single moment in time every last one of those young women hated Hino Rei with an almost inconceivable passion.

Rei's gaze was dazed and unfocused when he released her lips and she could almost hear the sound of bells ringing…or was it the bubbling sound of her own heated blood. Blinking, she shook her head hard, trying to regain a measure of her scattered wits. Her temper then came to her rescue and deep within the rich violet depths of her eyes, a light of pure crimson rage burst into flame. Nobody, but nobody, kissed her into senselessness like that, and especially not HIM. Furious, she slapped Jed hard, simultaneously kicked him viciously in the shins and jerked away just in time to come in on her last line. No one could ever say that Mars lacked timing.

"Stiiiiiiiill, IIIIIIIIIIIIIII…HATE…MEN!!!" Letting out a screech of pure indignation, she hurled a prop pot of red geraniums at Jed's head and stormed magnificently off stage in the manner of a pure diva, moving faster than a body should have been able to manage in her heavy costume, and scattering folks in the wings. Fortunately for Jed's future wellbeing, the geranium pot was light and thin and his head was naturally very hard.

Surrounded by shards of pottery, the sound of stunned applause ringing in his ears, a groggy and incoherent Jed lay on the floor wondering if she'd left singe marks on him. Then his personal curtain rang down and for Jude Edward Daito the Third the stage went black.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carried away by the force of her passion (in this case, rage), Rei was actually manifesting a visible aura, though she showed no signs of being aware of it. A wash of violet red light shimmered around her, fluctuating wildly, as she stalked down the hallway to the dressing area.

Slinging open the door she fixed a gimlet eye on two unfortunate young women who had the misfortune to still be in the dressing room putting on their costumes. Their eyes widened at the sight of her and all laughter between them ceased as dread thoughts of witch lights filling their brains. When she spoke, demanding, "OUT!", they flinched and then ran for their lives. Half dressed was better than wholly dead.

Rei slammed the door shut with a bang that nearly knocked the flimsy door right off its hinges, locked it, and stalked across the room to fling herself into a chair, whereupon she buried her burning face in her hands. Hot tears sizzled into steam on her still hotter cheeks before they had a chance to fall and allowed Rei to pretend that she hadn't cried for him at all, the miserable, stinking, golden-haired, silver-tongued wretch.

She could not have said how long she sat there, consumed in her fury and misery, but she was jolted from it by the sound of applause and a sneer of, "Brava, my dear."

Her head came up so fast she nearly snapped several of her own vertebra and then she paled.

Towering above her, far too close for Rei's sense of personal boundaries, stood a man who bore an almost eerie facial resemblance to the pink-haired freak from Valentine's Night. His hair, however, which hung over his flesh-hugging black body suit, was done up in a cascading brilliant lime-colored mass that put Rei in mind of a bad 80's hair band. His face was almost chalk white and streaked with black lines like war paint…except Rei had the disturbing feeling that his skin was not painted.

A quick glance at the door confirmed her worst fears. It was still locked. He'd gotten by some other non-human means.

"You're one of Pinky's brothers?" she accused, pointing a ruby-tipped finger in his face.

He made a mocking bow. "Very quick, my lady of the fires. I am Thanatos. And Pinky, as you call him," –he snorted disdainfully– "would be my brother Azrael. I must thank you for your splendid little light show." He waved a hand, airily indicating the shimmering aura around her, calling Rei's attention to it for the first time. "Had you not done so, I would have found it much more difficult to pick up on your position. The heat, though, loves your spitfire temper. It's both drawn to it and feeds it at the same time, making an unmistakable power signature. You saved me much time, my dear."

"I," Rei ground out, "am not your anything!" She bit back the urge to call him a freak. He'd probably take it as a compliment. "What do you want with me?"

"Many things," he murmured smarmily, raking his gaze lasciviously over her form.

Though her own native curves were relatively modest, at least in comparison to others like, say, Makoto, her gown's tightly boned bodice did have a certain molehills into mountains effect. Rei flushed, protectively covering her cleavage with both arms as she crossed them over her chest. Her eyes flashed with outrage. "Over my dead body."

"Only as a last resort," Thanatos assured her. "First I'll take the crystal, if you don't mind. Or, for that matter, even if you do."

Now the only crystal that Rei knew she had was her Sailor Crystal, which she'd lost once before to Galaxia (and losing that had HURT) and she wasn't about to give it up without a fight. Kicking out with her legs, she caught her unsuspecting would-be attacker in the gut, sending him careening away where he left a nice depression in the wall.

A flashfire enveloped Rei as she yanked out her henshin wand, cried out her transformation phrase, and the magic took hold. Yet as the rings of flame died away, the mysterious Sailor Mars stood before him, but she had changed. No longer was her hair the rich ebony so beloved by fanboys, nor was it either its recent mix of red and black, but it was now fully as scarlet as the fluttering silken skirts of her uniform and the crimson of her stiletto heels.

"I don't think so, you lime-sucking twit," Sailor Mars retorted, "for in the name of the warrior planet Mars, I will chastise you."

To her fury, he threw back his head and laughed. She aimed a blistering Fire Soul at his head but he ducked. Mars swore, backing up across the room to get a little more space to attack. There wasn't room enough for her Flame Sniper unless she wanted to send the whole theater up in flames.

"Impressive performance," he sneered. "But not nearly fast enough, Red. I want that fire crystal and you're going to give it to me."

"I don't know what you're babbling about," snarled Mars. "But I'm not giving you so much as the time of day! Happy immolation, you fruit loop!"

Again she hurled a searing blast of fire from her fingertips at him, and yet again he dodged, moving with preternatural speed.

She shrieked as she felt his hands, moving so fast her eyes hadn't even been able to follow, clamp round her shoulders, slamming her against a wall with incredible force, actually imbedding her in the plaster. Razor-sharp claw tipped fingers ripped through the soft but tough leather of her uniform top as though it wasn't even there and dug into yielding flesh, drawing blood as they did so. She cried out in sudden pain and he grinned ferally, licking up the rich-tasting, ruby-red, Martian fluid of life that stained the tip of one of his talons.

"Really," he smirked, baring fangs, his face rippling and contorting itself into something that was definitely inhuman. "You're just making this harder on yourself. Now about that crystal."

"You're a…a demon," gasped a stunned Sailor Mars, realizing that she couldn't move a centimeter. He was simply too strong.

"Or fallen angel," Thanatos agreed with an unpleasant smile. "Take your pick. But you can just call me master, fire wielder. By the time I'm done extracting your fire crystal, you won't be able to call up even a spark with a full box of matches and a flame thrower. I will bend the flames to _my_ will."

He bent his head and sniffed avidly at the blood that was beginning to stain her bodice, licking his lips hungrily. A lewd gleam that was equal parts lasciviousness and bloodlust filled his opaque eyes and Sailor Mars felt her soul turn to ice when he said, "You though, I think, Lady of Fire, will, when I'm done, make an amusingly docile pet…at least for a little while.

She was, Mars realized, completely and terrifyingly alone there. Not a single senshi would know she was in trouble until it was far too late. The only body nearby who could possibly possess the power to save her from the demon was also, after her repeated attacks on him, the least likely to want to do so. The knowledge that she most assuredly would have been safer in her one-time killer's avid and vexingly tempting embrace was a bitter pill to swallow, and had she been able to move it, she probably would have banged her head into something at the mere notion. However, bitterer by far was what would happen next.

As a clawed hand ripped through the tough leather of her bodice like it was tissue paper, she felt the malevolent magic pierce through her, searching for the pulsing core of her being. And then she felt the most brutal and agonizing pain ever as with a rending tear deep within her chest, something was mercilessly ripped from her.

The instinctual scream of denial that ripped from her throat was silenced in the most horrible way as Thanatos' icy mouth closed over her own and the bile rose sickeningly in her throat. She could only let out a psychic scream for help, hurling the plea into the ether as she prayed for salvation.

_JADEITE!!!_

(Author's Note: MintChocolate5 wins the 100,000 What's My Line points for figuring out that the previous chapter's title was a song by The Police. Rei's catty little vocal number was from Kiss Me Kate, a funny musical variation by Cole Porter on The Taming of the Shrew.)


	15. Fighting Fire With…What?

Chapter 15 – Fighting Fire With…What?

The sound of what had once been his own name being screamed in agony somewhere inside his skull drove Jed to leave the comforting blackness of unconsciousness.

He sat up with a heavy groan, shaking his head like a dog as he tried to clear out the cobwebs. Catching sight of a fragment of terracotta pottery, he growled. "Vicious harpy. She hit me. I'm swear, I'm going to paddle her until her backside's as red as her fuk…"

Hearing a gasp, Jed broke off a bit guiltily, meeting the eyes of the professor who hovered over him and then slowly looked around to realize that a large number of other people had witnessed his little encounter with Rei, including the smashing finale.

Disgusted with himself, he waved off offers of dampened handkerchiefs or aspirins, concentrating on getting to his feet on his own. He couldn't believe he'd been so careless to almost spill the beans about her fuku, and with it, her identity. 'I'm such a loose-lipped idiot! That'd be a quick way to get her killed!'

Another frantic mental scream ripping through his mind knocked him back on his knees, and he swayed unsteadily for a moment, drawing concerned murmurs from the professor who knelt beside him, patting his arm.

"We'll get you to a doctor, young man,"

"Don't touch me!" Jed barked, batting away the helping hand and leaping to his feet. "Where is she?"

Uncomfortable silence reigned as the various onlookers exchanged guilty glances.

"I said…where is she?" Jed repeated icily, rubbing his throbbing temple, ready to shake the knowledge out of the nearest person if he had to. Something was very wrong, he knew. The icy prickling of his skin and the strange crawling sensation on his scalp portended nothing good.

Finally a meek-looking young woman, clad only in a pair of tights and a dressing gown and face only half made up, standing next to another similarly garbed and barefoot girl, silently pointed off stage.

"Thank you. Carry on."

The tenor of his voice, honed in a previous lifetime's military experience and ringing with command, had people leaping back to their instruments, rustling their sheet music, and generally doing anything to avoid thinking about the confrontation that was likely to occur.

Jed raced down the indicated hallway until he spotted the door, the only one along that particular corridor. Turning the knob, he realized it was locked. He rattled it, then slammed a fist against it. "Rei, open the goddamned door! Right now!"

Unfortunately, much as she would have liked to do exactly that, she couldn't, and in fact she didn't even hear him. Rei, no longer Sailor Mars…having detransformed when the core of her fire, the core of her being, was ripped from her, was twisted in unspeakable agony, which rolled over her in unceasing waves. It felt like she was being torn absolutely in two and pain was the only thing in her world. She was going to be sick any second and could only pray that she would faint and thereby end her misery.

There was a shuddering bang as the locked door's scarred panels bulged inward with the violent blow from male shoulder. This was followed by another and another in quick succession until the door, if not the lock itself, gave way with a splintering crash, sending Jed stumbling into the room.

Cradling his bruised shoulder, Jed muttered in disgust as he spotted the electric lime green-haired being hovering over a violently thrashing but oddly silent woman, "Sweet Gaia, Rei!" he burst out. "What in the hell have you gotten yourself into now?"

Then he saw the blood drops, thick and wine colored, on the floor and matting down her full sleeves with sticky, rust-colored stains.

The warrior Jadeite had always considered himself a civilized man who, even in battle, used civilized weapons and with a code of honor, but for the first time he began to understand the basic, primitive appeal of tearing into a living, breathing body, rending it limb from limb with his bare hands. Pummeling it into a bloody pulp until it had gasped its last breath. Brilliant light exploded around him, transforming Jed, as he reacted instinctively to the sight of his woman's spilt blood.

The other man had to die…painfully. It was a simple as that.

The white jade bladed dagger was whistling through the air, embedding itself hilt deep between Thanatos' shoulders faster than non-magical human eyes could follow. Blood and ichor spewed forth. The dark angel let out a bellow that shook the rafters and stumbled away from Rei, clawing at his back and letting loose of his prize, though it did not fall.

The little part of Rei that was no longer completely consumed by searing pain realized that she could still taste that…thing on her tongue. Total revulsion at the thought had her gagging and she doubled over and vomited sourly, unintentionally freeing herself in the process and blessedly wiping the foul taste of Thanatos from her mouth. She lay on the floor amid the puddles of bodily fluids like a broken doll as images swam blurrily before her eyes.

Jadeite, brandishing not one but two nasty short swords, launched himself at Thanatos, intent on carving up the demon and possibly even then flaying the skin from the pieces…just so long as it would be more painful that way.

Thanatos, maddened by having pain inflicted on him instead of the other way around, clawed back, his talons connecting with and deflecting Jadeite's blades with an almost metallic clang as he let out a roar. They danced around the room in a deadly duel which was strangely reflected back to Rei at three different angles from the enormous dressing room mirror. At one point there seemed to be an almost infinite number of Jadeites and Thanatoses reflected, locked in unceasing, bloodthirsty combat.

A lazily pulsating ball of swirling red and orange light beckoned, however, its molten brightness calling her attention from the battle's perverse ballet. A little larger than the ginzuishou, its color was deep, intense and burning, and it seemed to radiate quietly blistering heat, like an orb of lava spinning in space. Rei wondered for a moment if she was the only one who could see its seductive gleam, since neither of the other occupants of the room, intent on their battle, were even looking at it.

It was weirdly peaceful, almost like watching a lava lamp, but one made of real lava instead of Technicolor goo. The longer that Rei watched the ebb and flow of its play of light and color, the better she felt. It soothed the raw, bleeding void in her chest. And suddenly it seemed to wink at her, as if to say, 'Come and get me.'

Without quite knowing what she was doing, Rei painfully dragged herself to her hands and knees and began crawling toward it, heedless of the danger or the scarlet streaks her broken and bleeding flesh left behind on the floor. She had to have it. It belonged to her.

That thought brought with it some clarity.

It didn't just belong to her. It was her.

For if her Sailor Crystal had been that which made Rei a senshi, the Fire Crystal was what made her Mars. It was the core of herself which connected her soul, however many times reborn, with the turbulent firestorm which still burned unceasingly in the heart of her planet.

Time itself seemed to hold its breath and still as she reached for it with both hands, drawing the flame into herself. Around it, her skin blistered, then charred and blackened, filling the air with the stench of burning flesh. The pain was excruciating. The Fire Crystal had never been meant to be touched by mortal flesh, not even hers. Still, Rei refused to let go. It was her birthright and her heritage and she would not be separated from it. Oblivious to the sounds of wanton destruction going on around her, she could only hear the insistent thrum of her blood, pounding like a mantra through her brain. Suddenly the crystal began to pulse in tune with that primal rhythm.

The crystal flared, white hot, and suddenly she was a part of the crystal itself, staring at herself in the tri-fold mirror. She could see Hino Rei on one side and Princess Reina on the other and Sailor Mars staring straight back at her. They were three and they were one and they were the blazing heart of the flame.

She smiled and they all smiled together. Her henshin wand was now no more necessary than a toy. She was the flame itself and it would work her will.

"Mars Eternal Ascendant Power, Make-Up!"

She couldn't have said whether she spoke the words or simply thought them. They only were as the snaking rings of fire wound themselves around her and she was buoyed up on the heated blast of a sirocco wind to reach her ultimate power level…and then she transcended it. The avatar became the goddess.

Her head snapped up and she flicked a massive fireball toward the battling man and demon as easily as she would have thrown a tissue into a wastebasket. The struggling pair broke apart as flames splashed against the wall between them, then stared.

To Jadeite's astonishment, Eternal Sailor Mars' eyes held none of their usual violet color, being round and burning red as embers. Yet in the center of the fire, her dilated pupils seemed to absorb all light, blacker than anthracite coal. Her fiery crimson mane billowed around her like licking flames, and in the midst of it all, the sigil of Mars blazed mightily on her brow.

"Return to hell, demon spawn."

"Nooooooo!!!" howled Thanatos in terror as she turned her burning gaze on him.

"Holy shi…" Jadeite gasped as the air thickened, making it hard to breath. He felt like dropping to his knees in worship. Instead he moved, slamming one of his swords through the demon's foot and into the floorboards, pinioning the evil being to a single spot on the floor.

He never got out the rest of his oath as Mars' scarlet lips rounded with a whisper as deadly as Pluto's scream.

"Mars…Infernal…Emberstorm…"

Tumbling flames and a whirlwind of burning embers gouted from Sailor Mars' fingertips, toward the trapped Thanatos, swirling and roaring like a raging wildfire. The inferno triggered every heat sensor and sprinkler system in the building at once, but within the dressing room, the sprinklers never had a chance. The water vaporized before it could so much as dampen a soul. Mars' blaze formed a searing curtain of pure red heat round the dark angel, purifying with heavenly flame until everything was burned clean.

Only a pile of fine white ash spattered by pools of molten steel was left when the curtain of hellfire fell.

She turned toward Jadeite. His eyes widened as he wondered morbidly if he was about to learn first hand what cremation felt like to the living.

Sailor Mars took three steps toward him, placing her palm against the breastplate of his armor, opened her mouth to speak, her eyelids fluttered, and then she dropped into his arms with all the grace of a felled tree, completely unconscious.

Horrified, Jadeite slid her to the floor, checking for mortal injury. For anything!

Yet even as he began checking her over, grateful that her wounds seemed to have sealed themselves, Rei's limbs began twitching spasmodically, and then she started to violently convulse, scaring him half to death with the thought that she'd suffered a damaging brain injury.

As he was ready to grab her and run to the nearest hospital and damn the consequences, the seizure passed and she stilled. Jadeite snatched up a mirror, somehow miraculously not destroyed, from the ruins of a dressing table, holding it over Mars' nose and mouth, incredibly relieved when it fogged with warm, albeit shallow breath.

Sailor Mars' eyes snapped open. As before, they burned with the heat of a thousand suns and a thousand deserts. Heat began radiating from her flesh as though magma rather than blood flowed through her veins, and Jadeite found himself forced back from her as the very air around her superheated to the point that the whole scene appeared to shimmer. As she stared up sightlessly, she began to speak in an eerie tone that Jadeite had never heard her use before and he suddenly realized that something or someone was using his Firebird as a conduit.

"When ten souls most blest in power into five hearts combined, and fair moon and mighty sun at their heights both aligned, the fall is nigh and red witch's curse malign. Taking form reflected in a mirror crack't; And so the moon and planets fell, hard wrack't"

Jadeite cursed, wondering why it was his woman who had to be the oracle. He didn't know jack about visions and portents, but he sure knew a prophecy when he heard one coming off her tongue. Grimly he focused, trying to remember every single word spoken, for with a prophecy, the slightest change in shade of meaning could throw understanding off forever.

Still staring blindly, Sailor Mars sucked in a deep breath before intoning, "Court of the planets, with Selene's daughter were re-bound, As elements: Water, Flame, Earth and Light, was each in her turn found. Angels twisted threaten those princesses four who stand uncrowned. And Blue Terra's lord stands and waits, sore alone, for the golden day his true men find may their way back home"

"Yet golden jade must join with the priestess of purest fire, and blossoming earth and starry jade their bond mutually desire. Wise tanzanite concealed by other name must woo his heartmate, she of aqua lyre. But only when sweet Amor's light joins hearts with rose yet silver stone, shall a crystal future bright make itself full known."

"Please let that be it," begged Jadeite of whatever was entity was speaking through Rei, his head swimming. "I'll never remember any more."

Evidently the deity wanted the last word, for Mars was not quite finished. Jadeite was not amused.

"Only when that which was broken again is mended, shalt all glory come to pass as ever was intended," gasped Sailor Mars, sounding half strangled.

Sweat beaded on her brow as she fell silent and her eyelashes fluttered down. She began to thrash and convulse violently once again, then went horribly still. She didn't even appear to be breathing, and her face was so bereft of all color so that she appeared waxen. Like an ember burning down, the wildly vibrant scarlet of her hair leached away until only her familiar raven color remained. The stifling blast furnace heat in the room vanished as suddenly as it had come upon them and Jadeite felt an icy chill which had nothing to do with the ambient temperature run down his spine like the touch of frigid fingers.

Finally able to approach safely, he was at her side in an instant, shouting. "Wake up! Don't you dare quit on me now, baby!" He shook her shoulders as hard as he could. "YOU WAKE UP RIGHT NOW!!! WAKE THE HELL UP!!!"

The sight of those soot dark lashes fluttering upward to reveal dazed eyes the color of French lilacs was the most beautiful sight Jadeite had ever seen in his life, and her ragged cough and gasp for breath were music to his ears. "Oh thank Gaia," he muttered thickly, drawing her to his chest. "You're alive, Rei. You're alive."

She slowly blinked and her throat worked as she swallowed, trying to find her voice. "You…saved…me," she finally managed to croak, looking faintly disgruntled.

"No, baby," he insisted, stroking her ashen face. "You saved yourself. I just helped out on distracting the beast until you incinerated his ass. Terra, but you scared the hell out of me!" He clasped her close, and to Mars' surprise, she could feel the little tremors shaking his big body as he held her, muttering feverishly, "Don't ever scare me like that again, you hear me? Or I'll handcuff you to my wrist until you're an old woman and too frail to get into such trouble again."

In spite of everything, that drew a little smile from her. "Ecchi," she mumbled faintly, brushing his cheek with a hand that felt positively leaden. "Tell anyone 'bout this 'an…I tell 'em you're a musical theater junkie."

He let out a bark of laughter at that. "Let's not get nasty now, Firebird, or I'll make you buy me a replacement sword for the one you liquidated.

"Gotta rest…now…" Sailor Mars gave a tiny wriggle and pillowed her raven head against him. "So…tired."

"That's okay, baby," Jadeite said, scooping her up in his arms and rocking her. "That's fine. You sleep now and I'll take care of everything."

Taking him at his word, Sailor Mars shut her eyes and nodded off. For a full five minutes, Jadeite stood there with her, simply watching the rhythmic rise and fall of her chest as she breathed, assuring himself by that means that she wasn't going to die on him, but was merely sleeping. Only when he finally believed that, could he force himself to move and face the crowd that had formed outside.

The sight of the sinfully handsome and brawny blond man in the military-esque uniform and cape emerging from the destroyed dressing area and protectively cradling an unconscious Sailor Mars in his arms shocked most of the fire sprinkler dripping onlookers so much that they were unable to speak, mouths hanging open, the better to catch flies. One enterprising young woman however, broke from the crowd, whipping a pen from behind her ear and an un-drenched notepad from god only knew where. She was minoring in music, but her major was journalism and she smelled a great story, if only she could get it.

"Sir…sir!" She rushed at Jadeite, tugging at his the gold braid which trimmed his sleeve. "I'm with the Tokyo-Azabu College Gazette. "Can you tell us what went on in there?" She gestured to the trashed dressing room.

"No comment," snapped Jadeite brusquely, brushing away from her as if she were no more than a pesky moth fluttering about him.

Never one to give up on a possible story, the girl persisted, dogging his footsteps. "Well, can you tell us how long you've known Sailor Mars? Are you two involved in fighting monsters? Or romantically?"

"No comment," he again snapped, even more testily.

The would-be reporter wasn't about to say die, at least not yet. "Would you at least give us your name, sir?" She fingered the fine woolen exterior of his cape until he jerked it out of her hands as he pulled away. "Are you a new super hero for Tokyo?"

"_Good night!!!"_ Jadeite exploded thunderously in his native English, all patience at an end. The girl let out a terrified squeak and dropped her pen and pad from nerveless fingers as if they'd been on fire. Gritting his teeth, he resumed his speaking in Japanese, "I said, no comment. End of discussion. And don't even think of following us."

With that he barged through the crowd which parted before him like the Red Sea for Moses. He was taking his Firebird home. Have caught a glimpse of the wicked looking blade on resting on his hip, not a single body, even the formerly intrepid reporter, dared follow.

Once well away from all reporters, witnesses and assorted lookie-loos, Jadeite ducked into a dark alley, and shook Mars gently. She opened just one eye, peering groggily up at him. "Wha?"

He chuckled. "You'd better change back, Firebird, unless you want your granddad to find out about the job you've been moonlighting on, 'cause I'm taking you home."

"Oh, 'kay," muttered Sailor Mars with a weary sigh. Then she opened her other eye and gave him as fierce a glance as she could muster in her exhausted state. "No peeking, you hentai"

Jadeite burst out laughing, but he screwed his eyes shut and turned his head to one side even as he groaned with feeling, "Take away all my fun, why don't you? Okay, Firebird, I promise not to look. Scout's honor."

Sailor Mars somehow managed even to snort at that, but she reached up and brushed the ruby jewel in her tiara, detransforming in his arms. Jadeite, as good as his word, kept his eyes firmly shut, though the temptation to peak was nearly overwhelming. He knew, though, that she was in no shape for fun and games, and she'd be entirely too enticing if he watched her transform back.

The act seemed to use up the last of her strength and Rei's head lolled back against his shoulder as she lapsed back into unconsciousness again. Jadeite sighed and brushed a quick kiss across her forehead. "Sleep tight, Firebird. I'll get you home safe."

He triggered his own detransformation before exiting the alley and carrying his lady home. Jed groaned a bit, though, when he was confronted yet again by the seemingly endless number of stairs. "She couldn't have an elevator, could she?" he whined. Still, there was no choice and she wasn't heavy.

Slowly he began climbing, taking extra care with his footing. That was as well because about halfway up he heard a pair of high-pitched avian screams as Phobos and Deimos dove at him with evil intent, their beady black eyes filled with malice. Had he been less surefooted, he might have fallen from the shock and badly injured both himself and Rei. He, however, remained rock steady. The crows swooped in, missing his face by scant centimeters and he cursed, hugging Rei closer and placing a protective forearm over her head.

"Goddamn crows," he swore, "they're going to cut her face to ribbons with those vicious talons!"

The birds, riding the air currents nearby screamed at him so violently, that he realized it was almost as if they'd understood his words and were defiantly answering him back, as if denying any intent to hurt _her_, though he was another story. He eyed them warily.

Jed had never dealt with birds before, but these two seemed possessed of an almost human…or perhaps that was a super-human intelligence as they swooped dangerously near him screaming aggressively. With that thought in mind, he decided to treat them as such.

"I didn't hurt her," he informed Phobos and Deimos coolly, knowing that somehow they understood him, "I rescued her. But YOU'RE going to make me drop her unless you two back the hell off."

The birds swirled away with a sharp cry of acknowledgement each. Readjusting his hold on Rei, Jed resumed climbing the stairs. Moments later the birds again swept in, but this time they were not focused on him, but on the woman in his arms. To his ears, their caws were mournful.

"She's just sleeping," he assured them. "Now go to your…" – he groped for the word– "…perch."

Again the birds seemed to heed him, but disconcertingly the perch they each chose was him, alighting on each of his shoulders, their beady black eyes fixed unwaveringly on Rei. When he shot one of them a startled look, the crow squawked insistently and pecked him lightly on the ear as if reasserting their right to be with their mistress.

Jed sighed in resignation. "Okay, fine. You two can come along."

As he crested the top of Sendai Hill, a short, squat, wrinkled, bald man in priestly robes rushed protectively forward at the sight of his precious granddaughter, seemingly unconscious, held tight in the arms of a fierce-looking blond gaijin. "Rei!"

Deimos and Phobos each let out a single squawk which had the effect of stopping the old man in his tracks. He looked astonished, and well he might have, for the birds never let anyone carry them, save his grandchild.

He fixed an intently curious look on Jed, who had the sudden feeling of something sweeping forcefully through his mind. Though he could have blocked the intrusion, he chose not to, understanding fully why it was being done.

"Who are you, young man? And what exactly are you doing with my granddaughter?"

Jed stared back boldly, shifting her weight so that Rei's head was better pillowed on his broad chest. "She was attacked, but she's fine now. Just tired. She needs to rest." He paused thoughtfully, then decided to add, a bit defiantly, "And I'm your future grandson-in-law."

Now the old priest from Sendai was many things, but truly foolish he was not, in spite of what his granddaughter often thought. Over the years he had seen much and studied more and had a potent gift for reading people and formidable spiritual senses, though he generally kept his own council about what he found, as he did the knowledge he possessed of Rei's unique nocturnal activities. He was utilizing all his skills at that moment to read the young man who had his dearest treasure clasped in his arms.

The moment of silence seemed to stretch out interminably, but finally the crepe-like wrinkles on the old man's face seemed to split and rearrange themselves as he slowly smiled. "I'll show you to her room."

Jed gave him a curt nod, following closely behind the old man as they disappeared into the temple's living quarters.

As he lay Rei down on her low futon and covered her gently, Rei's grandfather slipped in close and muttered to him softly. "Took you long enough to get here, boy. I was worried I'd wind up with a Christmas cake on my hands."

When Jed's eyes flared with outraged blue flame at the insult to Rei, the old man laughed aloud, though he kept his tone low enough not to disturb his grandchild's peaceful slumber. "You're a perfect match, you two. Neither you nor my temperamental granddaughter knows when an old man's putting one over on you. For your sake, boy, I won't tell her what you told me, because knowing her, I doubt she'd be pleased to know it, at least for now."

"But…" –he stuck out a hand in a hearty Western greeting– "welcome to the family. Tell me…exactly how much do you know of our faith?"


	16. What You Want, I Can’t Provide

Chapter 16 – What You Want, I Can't Provide

"No! Tell me you're lying! Please."

"I'm awfully sorry, Mako-chan," Usagi murmured, patting her friend on the arm before she turned back to her tumbler of honeydew milk tea and donburi bowl. They were seated on a bench in a quiet garden spot in the college's horticulture department, ostensibly just sharing a late lunch. In reality, she'd called her friend that morning and arranged to meet so that she could pass on the latest news from their mutual friend and comrade who was still buried in her lab…and who'd rightly figured that Makoto would take the news better from their princess. "I know you were hoping for better news."

Makoto looked crushed, twisting the green tip of her ponytail around her finger dispiritedly. It was more just the tip that was green, though, as her hair color, once it had begun its change, had progressed rapidly in its transition from auburn to other. It was as if it had only been waiting for the chance, and now Makoto's hair was, from root to tip, a soft, natural green, and had grown so long (even longer than Rei's and Minako's) and unruly in its tumbling curls that she couldn't even manage to hide it under a wig any longer. Some part of it was always sliding free and blowing the disguise of normality, so Makoto had been forced to give up.

"So Ami really said there was nothing she could do? My hair's going to stay like this…forever?"

"Um…well, no," Usagi temporized. "Not necessarily. She just said that it wasn't an illness, but that by her best estimate, it was magic. She didn't much like that either, since it's hard to quantify magic, and you know how Ami-chan is. She said it defied explanation. But she also said she didn't think it was outside magic. Or harmful. Not…malicious, I think, was the word she used. She said, though, that she's still not sure about why your hand keeps itching and said you should still use the skin cream."

"It doesn't help," groaned Makoto, before stuffing a spicy tuna roll into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed hard, barely tasting the tasty sushi, though it had been made with enough wasabi to make her eyes water and set fire to the plastic tray. "Any time any male gets too close or anything, I just about go berserk with the itching." She paused, mulling over Usagi's words.

"I don't understand how it couldn't be outside magic," objected Makoto finally, her lips twisting into a frown. "That would imply I was doing it and I don't _want_ it like this. I mean, my auburn hair wasn't exactly common here, but at least it was within the acceptable normal spectrum of human." She held out a fern-toned lock sideways for Usagi to see. "This just marks me as a freak of nature."

"Actually," murmured Usagi, reaching up to touch a glossy ringlet, "Now that I'm used to it, I think it's rather pretty like that. It emphasizes and brings out the deeper color of your eyes, Mako-chan."

Somehow, instinctively, Usagi always knew what to say to cheer her friends when they were down. Makoto gave her a weak, hopeful smile. If it was a lie, it was a good one. "Really?"

There was a vigorous affirmative nod from Usagi, who then turned her excessive vigor to sucking a particularly fat tapioca pearl up from the depths of her glass. The sweet but gummy black boba bead stuck for a moment in the straw, then gave way with an audible pop, shooting all the way down the back of Usagi's throat. She began to choke and sputter and Makoto found herself distracted rather firmly from her own concerns as she pounded Usagi on the back and tried to figure out whether she needed to perform the Heimlich maneuver on her well-meaning, but inherently klutzy friend.

The two friends spent the rest of the afternoon together, Usagi uncharacteristically acting as a sob sister while Makoto enjoyed the unaccustomed luxury of having someone to listen devotedly to her for a change. For the first time since she'd been accepted into college, Makoto decided to intentionally blow off her afternoon classes. Usagi, never one to study too hard, was with her all the way. But in her own way, Usagi was learning, for that afternoon as they laughed and cried together, she heard things about the normally very private Makoto that she'd never known before. She even heard the complete and unabridged story about Makoto's sempai.

However, cathartic emotional releases require fuel. Nothing went better with girl talk than chocolate, and fortunately Makoto had just the ticket, so they headed back to her dorm, gabbing the entire way.

"…and since that night my mood's just been all over the place. Up, down and sideways. If I didn't know better, I'd think I had terminal PMS." Makoto said, as she turned the key in the lock to her dorm room.

That drew a shocked giggle from Usagi which proceeded to turn into a very indiscreet snorting fit as she gasped and waved a hand, "Nah…that'd be Rei-chan's department."

Makoto froze in the doorway, seemingly riveted to the spot. Her crochet handbag slid from her shoulder to the floor with a soft plop. Usagi, not expecting her friend to just stop, bumped into her and let out a dismayed yelp. Makoto never budged.

"Omigosh," gasped Usagi, sobering rapidly as she peered around Makoto's shoulder at a room that was little more than a blank canvas. "You've been robbed!"

And so it appeared. The room, which had been tidy but stuffed that morning, had sometime during the day been stripped back to a level of bareness that was comparable to when Makoto had first seen it before she moved in. The bureau drawers, which were slightly ajar, were clearly empty. All of Makoto's books, her personal effects and other items were gone. Even the bedding had been stripped, leaving only a mattress which looked naked with only its blue and white stripped ticking.

Makoto zoomed into the room with a gasp, her head swiveling wildly as she confirmed the facts. "Everything's gone! How can this be? Who would do such a thing?"

Slightly unsteady on her feet, Usagi tripped over Makoto's purse and stumbled into the little room, looking around wildly. Her gaze happened to light on the bed and she squinted. There, almost hidden against the stark whiteness of the pillow was a sheet of folded paper bearing Makoto's name written in a bold slashing style.

"Uh…Mako-chan," she said, pointing.

She wasn't heard. Makoto was wringing her hands and trying not to cry, though she felt like bawling. When she'd moved into the dorm she'd had to store nearly everything, bringing with her only those few items that she most prized and couldn't live without. They were the items that connected her to her family and friends.

"It's gone." Makoto let out a despairing wail. "All my special, irreplaceable things like the pictures of my parents, the chest with my mother's things. Her tea set and wedding fan. Even from the window ledge…Kamekichi…the plant in the little terracotta turtle pot that Motoki-kun gave me when I moved into the dorms…"

Shaking her pigtails, Usagi pushed past her babbling friend and snatched up the letter, wrapping her friend's hands around it. "Mako-chan, focus! Someone left you this. Maybe it will explain things."

"Eh?" she sniffled. "What's this?"

"You might read it and find out," hinted Usagi with a pleading note in her voice. She gave a tiny sigh of relief when Makoto started to comply.

Carefully Makoto unfolded the missive, scanning the contents. Usagi watched like a hawk, gasping when Makoto's face went from pale to bright red in the blink of an eye, angry flags of color flying in her cheeks as she sucked in a breath. The note was crushed between her fingers and Usagi noted with concern that Makoto was holding it so tightly that her knuckles had gone white.

"What did it say, Mako-ch…?"

"That's it!" Makoto interrupted, ranting. "The nerve! The absolute gall! I can't believe he did it!"

"Why?" asked Usagi blankly, when she ought to have asked who.

"He's gone too far this time, that cocky, arrogant, son of a…"

"Who?" Usagi finally managed the proper question just in time.

"I'm going to go ninja on his face and get my turtle back, dammit!"

"What?" sputtered Usagi, screwing up her face in total confusion. "What ARE you talking about?"

Makoto's eyes narrowed into little emerald slits that still flashed with explosive ill humor and outside sudden thunder rattled the dorm windows as the environment reacted to her stormy emotional state. "Neil, dammit! Nephrite! Whatever you want to call him. HE took MY things! Specifically mentioned Kamekichi, saying it looked cute on the bureau and that I still had my knack for growing things. As if he would know! He also said he was expecting me at Sachi-Sachi hall." She made a feral sound, low in her throat.

"When? Now?" Usagi's mouth dropped open and she stared, wide-eyed. "Wait. Isn't that the hall for…"

"Exactly," Makoto hissed furiously. "Probably was his idea of a sick joke. Well far be it from me to disappoint the man." She took a few brisk strides forward and Usagi couldn't help wondering if the infuriated lightning senshi was going to go out the window and shinny down the drain pipe to save time getting to a violent confrontation with her thief.

Quickly Usagi scuttled forward to bar the way to the window, her cerulean eyes widening in faint awe as a jagged green-white fork of lightning split the sky. "Now, Mako-chan, I know you're upset, but you can't go off half cocked like this." She shuddered viscerally as thunder rumbled again. "Please Mako-chan, you've got to calm down. Pleeeease. For me…"

Had anyone else asked, Makoto would have likely have paid absolutely no heed, but that tiny piteous plea from her princess…from Usagi-chan, was another matter. Guilt swept through Makoto. She knew that Usagi hated thunder storms. They all knew it, and yet she'd let her temper get the better of her.

She took a series of deep, shuddery breaths, trying to re-center herself with her own version of the mantra Rei had taught them. 'Find a happy place. Find a happy place. Find a happy place, dammit!'

It took a while, but the ominous rumbling of the thunder and the flashes of thunder slowly ceased, although the sky remained suspiciously dark and filled with roiling clouds. Usagi, however, was grateful for small favors.

"Mako-chan," she suggested hesitantly, "Maybe you should go talk to him. Obviously that's what this was about."

"After what he did…then and now?!" she cried in disbelief. "I wouldn't give him the satisfaction," Makoto fumed.

A wonderful idea suddenly occurred to her, though, and an awful, uncharacteristically malicious grin spread across her face at the thought. Even though she wasn't a shred psychic, Usagi moaned, feeling the small hairs on the back of her neck prickle at what was coming.

"I'm going to call the police. You know, they deport foreigners who commit crimes."

"Mako-chan!" gasped Usagi, looking horrified. "You can't! You know he didn't want the stuff…I mean, your things."

"I know." Makoto rubbed her hands together gleefully. "But he took them, just the same. Oh yes, this is perfect. Perfect, I tell you! They'll deport him and ship him back to Canada and then my life will go back to normal except the green hair, but I can live with that. Dye it, maybe." Half to herself she muttered, "And my traitorous heart will go back to normal too."

"And you know what else, Usagi-chan," she added, shaking her head as if coming out of a small trance.

The tiny blonde whimpered miserably, waiting for the shoe to drop. "What?"

"I'm going to do it later."

"Huh?"

"Come on, Usagi-chan," Makoto laughed aloud, her good mood restored at having a plan of action. She scooped up her purse and twirled around with a flourish before grabbing her odangoed friend by the hand. "I'll teach him to think he can manipulate me like this. I've just got someone to let see me so he can stew for a while. Then we can go do something fun and just when he's wondering what I'm going to do next, then I'll lower the boom on him. Neil Sterne, you messed with the wrong lady!"

Usagi moaned again. It didn't really matter where they went, she knew. They were destined to find trouble. Sterne-san's completely idiotic action had been that of a man who was completely desperate. Desperate people were unpredictable when provoked. And Makoto was intentionally setting herself up to tweak him. There would undoubtedly be hell to pay.

Makoto, oblivious to her leader's discomfort, tugged her out the door, crying, "Let's go!"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Never in her widest dreams could Usagi have imagined how right she would be, nor where Makoto would actually drag her: the Kitai Home For Children.

"Mako-neechan! It's Mako-neechan! Mako-neechan!"

The exuberant cries of little girls, ranging from one barely more than a toddler to perhaps six years of age, darting toward them as they entered the courtyard gates, had both Makoto and Usagi, albeit reluctantly, smiling. They swarmed around Makoto's legs, tugging at her hands and her skirt. She seemed not at all surprised to find them playing there, though no adults were in sight.

"Fly me, onee-chan!" demanded one of the girls, whose sparkling eyes were just barely visible beneath her the blunt-cut bangs of severe institutional haircut. "Pleeeeease?"

"Okay, small fry," Makoto consented. "One Kohana-chan in orbit!"

With a broad grin that was no longer forced, Makoto swooped down and scooped up one of the girls with the ease of a doll, then flipped her upside down, swinging her through the air, secure in strong, protective arms. Giddy squeals of childish delight followed as the girl spun like a little acrobat before Makoto plunked the pair of small feet back down on terra firma and reached for one of the others who was clamoring loudly for her turn on the Mako-Express.

"You next, Susumu-chan. And then you, Naoko sweetie, and finally, Maiko, my littlest imouto, you get an extra loop for being so patient!" The tiny girl with the petite raven ponytail which bounced so like Makoto's, danced excitedly.

In spite of a feeling of unease, Usagi couldn't help but laugh at the antics of the kids, who were still flocking around like eager little birds. Suddenly she caught sight of one of the children's caretaker nuns peering through the front window. The older woman was smiling indulgently at her friend and shaking her veiled head. It was clear that Makoto was, per her explanation on the way, well known to the folks at this orphanage.

That thought made Usagi's heart twinge as she considered Makoto's words earlier that day about how very rare it was for one of the orphans to be adopted into a family and the subtle and sometimes not so subtle prejudices against them. Had Makoto not had the support of her friend Shinozaki's family and her parents' life insurance money to buy her way out, she probably would have, after her parents' deaths, remained stuck until she was grown in this place which, though neat and seemingly well appointed, was unmistakably institutional with all the cold sterileness that entailed, right down to the mathematically clipped bushes in the garden. No wonder Makoto had grieved so, Usagi thought, when she'd had to leave her tiny but cozy apartment for the college dorm. She'd made a real home for herself following her parents' deaths and then lost it again.

Mamoru would feel exactly the same way, she realized, for the first time truly appreciating the home and family she usually took for granted. Not everyone had that luxury. Her tender heart aching, Usagi offered up a quick silent prayer to whatever deities might be listening that the children here and in such children's homes and orphanages everywhere would all find homes where they would be loved and cherished.

Usagi's sudden urge to cry, though, was forced down behind a watery smile as she saw the pride in Makoto's eyes as she lined up the girls for inspection. "I want everyone to meet a friend of mine, Tsukino-san. She's one of my oldest and dearest friends, and she came here with me today to play with you. Usagi-chan, these are Sato Kohana, Watanabe Susumu, Takai Naoko, and Kobayashi Maiko."

"Konnichiwa, Tsukino-san," the girls chorused happily to the rabbit-pigtailed woman who was a friend of their dear oneechan. They, somewhat surprisingly, weren't a bit shy.

"Call me Usagi-chan," invited Usagi, bending down to get a better look at them.

"Can you play Oshikura Manju?" chirped one of them with studied innocence, naming the simple playground shoving game. Her name was Maiko, Usagi thought, as she tried to connect the names Makoto had rattled off to the proper faces. She was the smallest of the four, and she looked mischievous as a monkey. No wonder Makoto liked her.

"No," Makoto interjected, mock-severely as she clucked her tongue and caught the girl up in her arms, giving her a gentle shake. The child merely giggled, looking unconcerned as Makoto continued, "And neither can you rowdies. Too rough. But we can go inside and play quietly. Then, if you're good, maybe in a while we can go out back and play Dahrumasan Ga Koronda or tag or something." Her eyes twinkled merrily at Usagi. "I know you've had plenty of practice running fast enough for those games."

"I'll play, but only if I get to be the oni first," Usagi demanded, winking at the other three little girls who cheered. Maiko, however, remained unconvinced. Deprived of her first choice, she turned a pleading eye on Makoto and begged, "Can't we play senshi instead? We love that game. They fight the baddies and save the world. You two can be the monsters."

"Oh yeah," chorused the others in approval. "Senshi! Senshi!"

A startled look, Usagi noted, had crossed Makoto's face. Evidently this was something new from the girls. She leaned down, her pigtails falling forward as she asked, "So you four like the Sailor Senshi, hmmm? Well who likes which one?"

"I like Mars. She's awfully tough." Susumu piped up, holding up her hands as if hurling a fire ball at a phantom youma. She then struck a signature pose, pointing. "I'll punish you!"

"Sailor Jup'ter is tougher," Maiko insisted, tugging at her ponytail. "She protects people. And she wears her hair in a cute ponytail like Mako-neechan and me. I like her best." The little girl never noticed when Makoto's face went an embarrassed shade of pink.

"Sailor Moon is nicer than either of them, though," objected Naoko, causing Usagi to smother a pleased grin behind her palm. "'An she has a wand…thingie." She patted one of Usagi's signature silver buns of hair. "You like her too, don'tcha?" She grinned when Usagi nodded.

"Sailor Venus is the best of them all," Kohana insisted, grinning broadly and flashing a very familiar V sign. "Cause she's two-faced!" At that pronouncement, both Usagi and Makoto practically fell on the ground laughing.

Susumu rolled her eyes in a manner that was almost scarily reminiscent of her own favorite senshi, Mars. "Not two-faced, Kohana-baka. She's got a double 'dentity. Venus and V."

"Doesn't anyone here like Sailor Mercury?" asked Makoto with an inquisitive tilt of her head. From all accounts she'd ever read, Mercury was arguably the most popular senshi…or at least in a dead heat with Moon. To the petite genius' considerable embarrassment, she ranked far higher with the fanboys…a dubious distinction to be sure.

"Yeah," Naoko said with a small grin. "Rin-chan does. But she can't play today 'cause she's grounded for taking apart the matron's alarm clock to see how it worked, but she couldn't put it back together right. It kept going off all night long."

Usagi gasped, holding her stomach which hurt from all the laughter. "Okay, okay…we can play senshi later if you want." The little girls, save Maiko who was still in Makoto's arms, cheered and ran for the door to the children's home.

"Tell Housemother Takeshi we'll be right in, girls," Makoto called after them.

She shifted Maiko over onto her hip in a practiced motion before heading up the walkway. The little girl snuggled in comfortably, sure of her welcome, looping an arm around Makoto's neck. She then popped her free thumb in her mouth, looking blissfully happy. Looking for all the world like a proud parent, Makoto smoothed back an errant lock of hair which had escaped from Maiko's ponytail before sending the littlest girl on her way with a gentle motherly pat on the behind. The girl, with impressive speed, darted to the door, leapt for the too-high door handle and swung it open neatly, disappearing inside.

Usagi sighed, looking pensive. "You're so good at that sort of thing, Mako-chan, I'll have to take lessons from you when Chibi Usa-chan comes along, because I'm such a klutz."

"Whatever do you mean?" asked Makoto, looking mystified.

"That." Usagi waved her hand airily to encompass her friend's interactions with the girls, especially little Maiko. "You looked so natural with her in your arms like that. So competent and self-assured. Maybe someday you can adopt kids like those who really need a family most. Because, I think it's obvious that you were born to be a mother, Mako-chan."

The tall young woman flushed bright pink as she began to protest, "Usagi-chan, I…"

"The rabbit-haired one is correct, but you're wasting your time on pathetic brats like these, isn't she, brother?" drawled a cynical-sounding voice that had both women turning, only to swallow convulsively, Usagi in surprise and Makoto in horrified recognition. "After all, if their own blood didn't want them, why should anyone else, hrm?"

Makoto's face contorted in sudden rage at that and her hands balled into fists.

"If you say so, Erebos," drawled the pink-haired Azrael, looking quite overcome by ennui, his face twisted in a jaded sneer. "I've never been interested in either mothers or children. But I helped you find the Earth Crystal holder as promised." He chuckled, knowing Erebos, who was not overly blessed with brains, though he possessed an abundance of brawn, would never believe how easy it had been to track the woman after meeting her only once. "And now I'm gone. Just remember that you owe me, brother. And I always collect." He disappeared in a poof of Technicolor smoke, leaving Usagi staring in disbelief.

As Usagi gawked, Makoto shoved the blonde firmly behind her. "Run!" she ordered Usagi, her tone brooking no arguments. "That was the fellow from the other night! If anything happens to me, protect the kids, but save yourself." At those icy words, Usagi raced to call for backup, while Makoto remained, glaring at the…well, he wasn't exactly a man…before her, whose hair was the color of papaya flesh, or possibly a mango, a disturbing combination with a face that was literally tar black and liberally streaked with bone white stripes. He was big, she noted. Very, very big, and at least a head taller than his candy-floss haired brother. Not that it bothered her, as she cracked her knuckles expectantly. The bigger they were...

"Get the hell out of here," Makoto demanded, glaring at Erebos, who had fortunately, from her point of view, shown no interest whatever in Usagi as she fled. "Whatever you want here, you'll damn well have to go through me to get it!"

"That's the whole idea," he said with a smirk that made Makoto fume. "You've got the Earth Crystal and I'll be having it from you."

Makoto's eyes narrowed. 'What the name of Zeus is an earth crystal and why does this bozo think I have it?'

"Don't worry now," Erebos said with a smile, looking quite smug. "I'm not the brutal thug that my late, unlamented brother Thanatos was. I'll collect your Earth Crystal, but I won't hurt you the way he would have. I promise, this won't hurt a bit," he lied.

"I don't have an Earth Crystal," Makoto snarled, pulling out her henshin wand and holding it aloft. Even if she had, she wouldn't give it to him. "If you knew anything about anything, you'd know I was Jovian, not Terran. I'll generously even prove it for you. Jupiter Eternal Power, Make-Up!"

With impressive speed, he hurled a…something at Sailor Jupiter mid-transformation. It resembled a beam of black energy which sliced through the halo of green-white lightning around her with a scalpel's accuracy. She'd not been expecting it and it slammed into her chest, knocking her back about a half a meter and sending her henshin wand skittering away from the impact of the blast.

Usagi let out a sharp cry of alarm and grabbed her broach. Sailor Moon and the other senshi were needed…now.

Erebos grinned and held out a claw tipped finger, beckoning. "Now come here, my dear."

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." Sailor Jupiter openly gawked at him, shaking her head in disbelief.

The contortion of his face was almost comical as Erebos did a total double take. "What? Defiance? Come here at once!" he shouted, pointing at a spot immediately before him.

"Hell no!"

Suddenly, Erebos appeared a lot less winning, glaring at Jupiter like a spoiled child denied a treat. "Why the hell aren't you under my control?" he growled at her, as if she should know. "The mind bond should have worked! Why didn't it work?!"

Sailor Jupiter's lips twisted into a mou of disgust and she glared daggers at him. "Is THAT what your little black light whammie thing was supposed to do? Turn me into some sort of mindless toy of yours? You bastard! How about you try my whammie on for size instead?!" She threw herself forward and hurled a vicious punch to her foe's nose, smirking as she felt the give and heard the sickening crunch of pulverized cartilage. "Take that, you sicko mind rapist!"

Green blood poured from his nose, staining Jupiter's glove a shade reminiscent of pond scum, only less attractive. Erebos let out an ear-ringing bellow as he toppled backward. "NO, DAMN YOU! YOU HAVE TO GIVE ME THE EARTH CRYSTAL!"

"Over my dead body," sniffed Jupiter, forgetting for a moment she didn't have what he wanted, crossing her arms over her chest. "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

Lightning split the heavens, racing to Jupiter's call. Flinging her hands outward, she hurled the crackling, white-hot mass of power at Erebos like a hundred kilometer an hour fastball, but at point blank range. The energy enveloped him with a blinding flash and he let out a bellow. Pleased, Jupiter turned away, dusting her hands together in satisfaction. "That wasn't so hard."

History has long proven that pride goeth before the fall. And so it was that day.

As the mass of storm finally dispersed with a sizzle, it revealed a truly furious Erebos. A truly furious and mostly unscathed Erebos who was ready to make Sailor Jupiter suffer for her audacity.

Sailor Moon let out a shriek of alarm. "Jupiter! Look out!"

Her warning was too little, too late. Erebos lunged, grabbing Sailor Jupiter by the throat and lifting her right off her feet, his fingers wrapping around her now all too aptly named choker, his other hand tearing at the bow over her heart.

"I don't know why the mind bond failed, but you're going to regret raising a hand to me, lightning witch, even if your pitiful attack didn't do much more than tickle," he informed her, taking special pleasure in watching her pale. "I would have been a benevolent master, but now…you'll just die instead. Slowly. But first I'll extract your crystal the hard way. From your bleeding, broken, soon-to-be corpse."

His strange chartreuse colored eyes burned at her demonically, almost hypnotically, over his swollen and battered nose and Sailor Jupiter reacted more than thought, blocking the freakish sight from her own eyes by hurling a quick Flower Hurricane attack at his, making him scream. Contrary to his earlier yell, this was a pained cry and Erebos dropped her unceremoniously to claw at the stinging, blinding spray of delicate pink petals.

Sailor Jupiter scampered like a hare to put some distance between herself and the demon, wheezing as she tried to suck some breath into her starving lungs through a bruised windpipe. She hoped to goddess that Usagi had gotten somewhere safe and had managed to call the other senshi. Anything that could just bounce off one of her lightning attacks was a foe not to be sneezed at.

Gathering her strength, she spun nimbly on her toes, powering up her strongest blitz attack, the Jupiter Oak Evolution, and launching it with the power born of desperation.

The lightning storm, compressed into a thunderous swirling cyclone of electric green leaves surrounded Erebos with its fury, but he roared and lunged forward, bursting free, though he bore the marks of the attack. Livid white marks scored his skin and more of the putrid looking blood oozed from them.

"Damn it!" swore Jupiter, leaping to the top of the orphanage's surrounding wall as he clawed at her, missing her by a hair, his fist literally punching through the concrete block and sending stinging chips flying. "Get the hell away from me, you freak!"

Sailor Jupiter dove headlong away from him, somehow managing to somersault in midair to land on her feet. She was starting to panic. She'd thrown her heaviest artillery at him and had barely made an impact. What did it take to put the overgrown mango-head down anyway?

"Use your plant attacks!" Sailor Moon screamed popping up out of the bushes near the building.

"Of course." Jupiter felt like slapping herself for her own stupidity, her only excuse being that everything had happened so fast it had left her dizzy.

Her power was two-fold, a rarity amongst the senshi, though one she rarely thought about. Her Oak Evolution was the perfect example of the duality, melding both the plant and lightning forces in a single attack, though the lightning was certainly the more dominant force. Now that Sailor Moon had pointed it out, she realized that the blonde was right…botanical or nature based attacks had been the only ones that had seemed to make a dent in this demon. And yet, to her they always seemed so much weaker, or at least with less bang for her yen power-wise, than her electrical attacks that she usually didn't even bother unless it was for distraction purposes. She only had one more in her arsenal anyway, that she knew about, but she it was worth a try since she was rapidly tiring and running like a rabbit was humiliating. The senshi of protection was supposed to be above needing it herself, dammit!

Erebos wrenched free his fist, leaving a hole in the heavy blocks the size of a child's head, and bared his teeth at her, running his long tongue along them with a liquid slurp. Jupiter shuddered realizing that those teeth were in rows, razor sharp and more reminiscent of a shark's maw than human dentition. Grimly she intoned the attack phrase.

"Jupiter Coconut Cycl…"

She was cut off with a strangled gasp as he lunged with lightning speed and wrapped his hands around her throat, dragging her up against a body that fairly pulsed with inhuman strength. "Oh no you don't, botany bitch!"

Dimly over the pounding of her own pulse, Sailor Jupiter heard a scream that she knew must be Sailor Moon's, and she bucked as the deeply ingrained urge to protect her princess warred with her body's own instinct to preserve its life. 'I swear, if she doesn't stay back to protect the kids, I'm going to come back after I die and haunt her!'

"Now what shall I do with you?" he chuckled darkly as Jupiter twisted frantically in his grasp, clawing at his iron-like fingers which were digging into her throat. One hand stroked possessively over her breast, making her cringe as her skin crawled and she felt like vomiting. "How about we try this again, hrmmm?"

"No," she managed to squeak out with what felt like her last breath, though the only result was further compression of her windpipe. Black spots began dancing before her eyes. 'Maiko's going to be so disappointed in me,' she thought as she began to black out.

A verdant green glow began to form under Erebos' fingers as, with one hand, he shredded through the rosy bow over her heart and dug into her flesh. Makoto silently screamed in anguish, feeling like she'd somehow been torn in two as her body, independent of all conscious thought, attempted to curl in a protective fetal ball. What had he done to her? She was very minimally aware of a flash of emerald green and Erebos's cry of triumph. 'Is that…the…Earth Crystal?'

"How about you take your goddamned hands off her before I sever both your arms at the wrists?!" rumbled a low, gravely and very dangerous sounding voice.

Nephrite was beyond pissed.

He'd fully expected to have a totally livid Makoto racing to confront him after he'd left his note on the bed in her emptied dorm room. He'd been counting on it. In fact, he'd been unable to hide his triumphant smile when he spotted her headed his way, feeling not a shred guilty about unceremoniously switching her living arrangements after the attack on Sailor Mars.

He'd felt especially vindicated after he'd seen and, to his horror, recognized the vindictive orange-haired witch who was spending a new life tormenting others, this time as the RA from Hell. It was his absolute duty to protect her from that harpy, Beryl, and any other threats. The fact that it also coincided with his plans to draw her out, was a happy coincidence indeed.

But when Makoto had merely passed by without a comment, wearing a satisfied smile that made his stomach churn nervously for no good reason, he'd been left completely at sea, unsure of what to do next. The plan ought to have been a sure thing, knowing his quick tempered angel as he did. His highhanded actions should have guaranteed her presence, but instead she'd swept past with the grace of a queen, not even deigning to shoot so much as a disparaging glance in his direction, as her petite blonde friend struggled to keep up with her leggier stride.

He'd debated with himself for a few long minutes whether to go after her before he'd finally decided that Zarek's idea of letting her come to him was an idiotic notion. She needed protection, whether she knew it or not. He'd followed at a distance, watching as the two young women had disappeared within the gated confines of the orphanage. Since he couldn't blow her cover, he had determined to wait outside, some distance away for her, but when the attacks started, that was it as far as he was concerned. Cover blown or no cover blown.

In spite of what Zoisite or Jadeite might have said, Nephrite considered himself a reasonable man, but the dark angel with the mustard yellow-colored hair had pushed him too far when he'd laid a hand on Makoto. Especially after hearing from a still shaken Jadeite exactly what the demon's foul kin had done to Sailor Mars. His white-knuckle tight clench on the handle of the wicked oversized battle ax that presently rested against his shoulder was only the most outward sign of Nephrite's phenomenal inner fury. Colonel Mustard was going to pay dearly.

"Why should you care what I do with her?" demanded Erebos, struggling to hold onto the writhing woman while he focused his attention on the angry ax wielder who'd just threatened to shorten his sleeves for him. "This has nothing to do with you, Terran," he said with a look of pure contempt for the king before him.

"It's an old Elysion custom," Nephrite snarled, his tone icy as an arctic wind. His indigo eyes glittered with all the warmth of a glacier as they locked with Erebos'. "Call me old fashioned if you must, but I just get really madder than hell at seeing men paw women who clearly don't want their attentions.

Had a wrathful Zeus himself laid down a rain of thunder bolts in the small courtyard, Nephrite's next words couldn't have had a greater impact or been more shocking.

"Especially," he continued in a harsh, rumbling growl, "when the woman in question happens to be my wife!"


	17. Who? What? When?

Chapter 17 – Who? What? When?

"Your wife?!" Erebos and Sailor Moon yelped as one. Sailor Jupiter's captor, in fact, was so stunned by the news that his lock on her throat loosened. As she jerked spasmodically in his grasp, Sailor Jupiter fell free, instinctively clasping the evergreen Earth Crystal to her breast and dropping through space like a stone with a startled, half-strangled shriek. Fortunately for the Jovian senshi, a stand of small shrubs along the fence line broke her fall. Although no one noticed, the scraggly bushes immediately began to bud out with new vibrant life.

Seeing Jupiter fall clear, Nephrite lunged with his battle ax, taking several mighty swings at Erebos who leapt back and accusingly hissed at him. "You're the reason the bond wouldn't take. Damn you, human! Damn you for ruining everything!"

In a burst of rage, the dark angel slammed one heavy foot down on the gold and emerald henshin wand, shattering it beyond any repair and abruptly reversing Jupiter's transformation as the spell, with nothing to bind and focus it, could not be sustained.

Nephrite attacked with redoubled fervor. Sailor Moon raced to her friend's side.

Makoto sat there among the leaves for a few seconds, too dazed and confused to even think of moving, but essentially unhurt, the searing pain having ceased when she'd clutched the crystal to her breast. Though she could barely seem to manage breathing at that precise moment in time as bright purple bruises in the shape of fingers stood out in ugly relief on the soft skin of her throat.

Thoughts tumbled lightly through her brain, as if stumbling through a pea-soup fog. She had an Earth Crystal. She didn't know why, but she did…and here it was in her hands. Slowly she parted them to look and it was then she understood.

It was a crystal of Earth, not the planet, but the ancient element of nature itself. Earth.

The crystal was an odd thing, neither rounded nor faceted like the ginzuishou, but shaped almost like a mint leaf locked in green ice, with rippled edges which were gently beveled. Seemingly etched inside the surface of the crystal itself was a delicate feathery pattern most reminiscent of the frosted fronds of a woodland fern. It was neither overly warm nor cold to the touch, but seemed to draw its temperature and light from its keeper, and it quivered and hummed like a tuning fork finding its pitch as she ran one bare finger over the center.

Deep inside her she could feel the answering resonance.

The spicy scent of pine needles and sweet orange blossoms and fresh, crisp breezes filled Makoto's lungs, driving away the smog of city life. Deep the heart of the crystal there was a crystal flash of storm that was reflected in the emerald gleam of her eyes as she fully unlocked the other half of her planet's dual gifts.

She alone could wield their power.

A voice that seemed not her own whispered, "Jupiter Eternal Ascendant Power, Make-Up!"

Gossamer wild rose petals of softest pink cascaded around her like so much confetti and butterflies danced on delicate, gossamer wings, buoyed up on the sweet wind as she summoned her ultimate form.

Sailor Moon watched wide-eyed as a barefoot Eternal Sailor Jupiter, the embodiment of nature itself, rose to her feet, a single dragonfly fluttering forward on to perch on the soft green fall of her bangs. Beneath them the sigil of her planet flared brightly. Jupiter's spirit smiled.

With each step she took, a carpet of multicolored wild flowers erupted behind her, breathing vibrant new life and energy into the orphanage's courtyard.

As if hearing for the first time the cacophony of man versus demon, Jupiter turned accusing green eyes on Erebos. "You have no business here," she whispered. "Leave now, or be destroyed."

Neither man nor demon responded, locked in mortal combat, but Jupiter was not about to be denied. She sent a blast of vanilla scented orchid petals toward Erebos, knocking him away from Nephrite with a simple explanation through a cool smile. "No. No you don't. If anyone's going to kill him, it's going to be me. Not some demon with hair the color of a squash and a face like a pumpkin."

"I can handle him," Nephrite growled in frustration, making another swing with lethal intent.

With a fling of a hand more flower petals pushed the warrior further from rather than closer to his goal, making him curse.

"I won't have you spilling blood here," reproved Sailor Jupiter solemnly, her eyes flashing. "This is a home for children."

The three-way standoff might have continued indefinitely had a fourth party not made the scene in the worst possible way.

"Alright, nobody move."

"Oh wow! Sailor Senshi!"

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In every children's home there are at least a few children who never seem to manage to fit in. The Kitai Home was no exception to this rule. Once upon a time that child had been Makoto herself, but the role of outsider was presently held by Shiin Rin, a child who had been anonymously abandoned as an infant. Clearly part gaijin, she was even less adoptable that the others, and she didn't even have a family name that anyone knew, so an optimistic social worker had dubbed the girl Shin, meaning faith, feeling that every child going through the system needed a little faith to get through. Unfortunately a rather nasty head cold had distorted the woman's voice when she was talking with Department of Vital Statistics, so the poor girl's family name had been formally inked in as Shiin, or 'cause of death' by a bureaucrat who was on his last day on the job due to having been let go for incompetence, and who didn't care that it was a disgraceful error. The mistake had not been caught in time, and Rin was stuck with the horrendous name. It was only the start of the girl's misfortunes.

The latest had been getting caught after she had sneaked out of her room in the orphanage after being grounded by the matron for her little experiment in the mechanics of time-keeping. Unfortunately for Rin, due to similar escapes in the past, every police officer in the area had been informed of her habit of going walkabout, and if they caught sight of her, they would immediately return her to the orphanage. She'd had the bad luck, sneaking away toward the park, to get caught by the sternest of the lot. For it to have happened so soon, she knew, some one of the kids who was not a part of her small circle of friends must have ratted her out. She'd been marched back in short order, though she'd struggled the whole way.

Of course neither Rin nor the officer returning her had planned on walking into the middle of a fight between a Senshi, a demon, and a Shitennou. Rin's deep blue-green eyes were as wide as dessert plates as she looked around, hoping against hope to see Sailor Mercury, her favorite senshi of all. Kazuhiko Kane's, on the other hand, were narrowed dangerously as he squinted down the barrel of his firearm.

Officer Kazuhiko had always been a by the book cop (as one Aino Minako had recently found out to her considerable disgust), and he had long considered the so-called Sailor Senshi to be, in his estimation, little more than a pack of female vigilantes, not heroines, despite their much beloved status with the general public. For one thing, monsters or no monsters (and having never seen one, he was inclined to believe in no monsters...people were just way too inclined toward mass hysteria), they always seemed to leave behind a lot of very expensive property damage. So he wasn't happy to see two of them now, though he was rather swiftly revising his thoughts about monsters as he eyed the inhuman-looking, yellow-haired being before him. His split-second assessing glance at the man with the...was that a battle ax?...though, had given him a strange jolt to his nervous system that he couldn't really explain.

Sailor Jupiter's and Sailor Moon's gazes involuntarily slid toward the newcomers and Jupiter gasped, biting her lip as she recognized the small face peeking out from behind the police officer's navy blue pant leg.

Erebos grinned, shark-like. How convenient of the humans to provide him a hostage. Causing a little pain (or more) to the little one would doubtless work wonders in convincing the Lady of the Earth to hand over the crystal. Of course he would have to get rid of the annoying big one first. But no problem...

He bounded away from Nephrite and with a single slash of his claws, laid Kane's chest open practically from throat to belly even as several rapid-fire bullets all but bounced off his hide. Gruesome speckles of hot crimson splattered across Rin's face and the little girl screamed shrilly as he bounded away with her. So did Jupiter, crying out the girl's name brokenly as she lunged forward, only to be yanked up short by a male arm locking around her middle.

"Damn you, NO!" she howled, thumping Nephrite on the chest as he reeled her in before she could get killed.

"Are you crazy?!" he demanded, as she fought valiantly for her freedom. "Do you want to die?! He just gutted that poor bastard!" His eyes flicked down toward the fallen man, who lay like a beast bled for butchering.

Tears streamed down Sailor Moon's face as she grabbed the Eternal Tier and raced toward the bleeding policeman. "I can save him!" Her lips moved in fervent but silent prayer as she dropped to her knees at his side.

The dying man gazed at her with dull eyes, his complexion going as grey as those pale orbs. He tried to speak, to tell her that he knew he wouldn't make it. Sailor Moon whispered in his ear. "Stay with us..."

Jupiter squirmed in Nephrite's grasp until she grabbed a double handful of nut brown hair, jerking his head down until it was level with her own and he felt as though it would be yanked out by the roots. Dew-touched green eyes blazed into midnight blue as she hissed, "You let me go so that I can rescue that innocent baby girl, or I swear to Zeus himself, I will kill you with my own bare hands, do you hear me Nephrite?! I've died before and will probably die again, but she's never even had a chance. I'm going to give her that chance, come what may, dammit! On my oath as a senshi!"

She was absolutely, dead serious, he realized. His desire to carry her off to someplace, anyplace safe warred with his pride that she took her responsibilities to others so seriously. She led with her heart, and damn the consequences. If she had done otherwise, she wouldn't have been the woman he'd fallen in love with a millennia before.

In spite of the screaming of his scalp, he leaned forward and brushed a fleeting kiss over her lips, murmuring against them. "Go kick his ass, Angel." As her eyes widened in realization, he dropped his hands from around her, leaving her free to do some demon butt kicking.

As he fell back to help Sailor Moon, Sailor Jupiter whirled away, facing off against Erebos. "Let Rin go. This is between us."

The war paint-faced demon's maw split and curved in a grotesque parody of a smile as he ran his fingers through the terrified child's blood-matted hair. "Now why would I give up such a" –his tongue slurped over his fangs noisily and Rin moaned weakly, looking like she was going to faint– "delicious bargaining chip?"

"Because," Jupiter announced with a death's head smile as she held out her cupped hands, which glowed green from within, "I've got your precious little Earth Crystal. And if you want it intact, you won't," she glanced with visible distaste at the fearsome clawed hands which toyed perilously close to Rin's face, "touch so much as a single hair on her head. Harm her, however, in any way and I'll shatter it myself."

She ran her fingers over the crystal again so that they could both hear the quivering song as it tuned itself to her. He watched intently as she slipped the precious thing into her bodice, cradling it between her breasts. It began to thrum in tune with the beat of her own heart.

The demon's eyes narrowed and he sucked in a breath. "You'll destroy your own powers in the process."

"I have more than one," Jupiter reminded him, letting a trickle of her storm power free to crackle casually between her splayed fingers. "Shocked? Well here's something even more shocking. I'll give it...and myself to you in exchange for Rin."

"And why should I trust you, bitch?" Erebos asked, looking slightly doubtful for the first time.

Jupiter arched a haughty eyebrow, managing to look every inch an offended royal, in spite of her bare toes, which curled in the scraggly but rapidly improving grass at her feet. "A princess' word is generally considered bond enough."

She turned an intense gaze on Rin, kneeling down so that she was on a level with the girl's glassy eyes. "Rin...can you hear me? Rin?"

The little girl moaned, making Erebos smirk. The fear was rolling off the child with each drop of sweat from her brow. The delicious scent made him salivate, but so did the knowledge that everything he wanted was almost within reach. Soon he'd have the woman and the crystal and its powers, and that stupid Terran who'd challenged him would have lost it all. It was more than he could have hoped for. He weighed the options. He had only to give up the child...

"Fine...the worthless orphan brat goes free."

"Done."

"Rin!" snapped Sailor Jupiter harshly as she switched her attention from demon to child. "I need you to pay attention. Answer me!"

The little girl stiffened. That tone was the one that the matrons and the social workers always used when they gave her one of their "We're very disappointed in you," speeches. The tone that always belied their gentle words. Sullenly she answered, "What?"

"I know you're scared, but I need you to focus, Rin," explained Jupiter, adopting a very matter-of-fact tone once she realized she had the girl's attention. "Do you know who I am?"

The child nodded. Her tone was flat and emotionless as she answered with a completeness which would have done Sailor Mercury herself proud, "Sailor Jupiter. The Senshi of Lightning and Thunder."

"I'm also the Senshi of Protection," Jupiter added. "And I'll protect you. Now when Erebos-san here lets you go, I need you to walk away. Not run, but walk very calmly to Sailor Moon over there. Can you do that for me?"

Rin's gaze flicked in the direction the green senshi pointed. She flinched slightly at the spreading crimson pool in which the other senshi knelt, but swallowed hard and nodded slowly. "I can do that."

"Good girl," Jupiter whispered, gracing the girl with a smile. She glanced at Erebos. "Let her go. Each step she takes away from you, I take one closer."

From the scowl on his face, the demon didn't like that, but the Senshi of Protection didn't care. She met the demon's fierce glower unflinchingly, not about to back down.

"Fine," hissed Erebos finally, uncurling his claws from around the girl, licking the blood from them and savoring the taste of hot salt and copper.

"Now Rin," ordered Jupiter. "Walk to Sailor Moon. Slowly."

The little girl, with a final glance at the implacable senshi's face, took a tentative step forward. Her eyes widened as she realized that Jupiter had taken a single step toward her captor.

"Again," grated the green senshi when the child paused.

Slowly, step by torturous step, the pair moved in different directions, like partners in some sort of grotesque dance. Erebos watched, his claws outstretched in eager greed. Soon...

Sailor Jupiter felt more than saw when Rin reached Sailor Moon's side. She knew the instant that Nephrite grabbed the girl, shielding her with the sturdy protection of his large body, and she could feel the power of the Eternal Moon Tier's magic working to save the fallen officer. So now it was up to her.

Taking the final step toward Erebos, she fought back the urge to shudder as those ice cold talons closed around her shoulders and shoved her downward. "Curtsy for your master, slave bitch," Erebos ordered, eager to see the proud woman humble herself before him. "I want to see a former princess bow to me."

"As you wish," Sailor Jupiter whispered, dropping into a graceful full-court curtsy suitable to any regal occasion. Her arms were held out at her sides as she descended slowly into her bow, then leaned forward over her extended leg and lowered her head. She ought to have had a silken ball gown's folds spilling about her, like the petals of a great flower, but instead she had only a fluttering of wildflowers and the fall of her silky green curls around her as her brow nearly touched the earth itself.

A coarse laugh of triumph came from Erebos as he savored the moment. "Not such a princess anymore, are you?"

"No," replied Jupiter, her tone suspiciously light. "Of course, in this life I never was a princess..."

Erebos looked down at her in surprise as she continued. "I was one of those worthless, parentless orphans."

"You?" he asked in spite of himself. "A filthy orphan urchin?"

"Yes," she answered. Almost inaudibly she muttered, "And as Rin would probably say...you never can trust one of those rotten orphans."

She paused for the barest fraction of an instant, then planted both hands flat on the earth itself and whispered, "Woodbine...Efflorescence..."

The ground rumbled ominously, as if one of Tokyo's all too common earthquakes was beginning. Sailor Jupiter smiled down at the earth, her look of satisfaction hidden by the thick curtain of her hair. Erebos had tainted the children's home with innocent blood, and now he would pay.

Dozens of thick woody vines, heavily laden with exotic flowers and emerald leaves, shot up from earth, which had split beneath Erebos' feet, and twined about him in a tangled, deadly embrace. He let out a choked cry of pain and outrage.

"Ensnare..." Her head snapped up and her gaze bore into him. "You'll never get this crystal, you monster. Not while there's breath in my body."

As the vines constricted, a thousand little needles seemed to pierce through Erebos' hide and burrow deep, seeping their rich fluid into his veins. It burned on him like acid and he screamed, vanishing in a stinking cloud of sulfurous smoke. Only his voice remained behind, with his parting howl. "You'll pay for that, bitch. One of these days, you'll pay!"

"Put it on my tab."

Sailor Jupiter chuckled weakly and leaned her head on her knee for a long moment, feeling woozy. She wouldn't notice until considerably later that the verdant green of her hair slowly leeched away revealing its familiar warm auburn shade.

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Sailor Moon had not been slacking off as Jupiter squared off against the demon. Horrified by the realization that no one, not even the world's most talented team of trauma surgeons could save the poor man, even had they been there on the spot, she hesitated for not an instant. Only the Eternal Tier backed by the power of the ginzuishou held any hope for him. She only hoped it had enough power.

The magic had a true battle to win, as the man hovered so close to death that he would later swear he'd felt the grim reaper's icy chill coming over him before his world exploded in a flashfire of crystal light.

Yet the ginzuishou would not be denied its chance to snatch life back from death's gaping maw. Leaking blood vessels sealed themselves as did lacerated organs, body fluids replenished through spontaneous regeneration, and torn flesh, bone and muscle began to knit themselves up so neatly that even Ami's surgeon mother would have been impressed with the result.

Nephrite had been trying desperately to keep an eye one eye on Makoto and another on the astonishing resurrection that was being performed before him. But what amazed him even more was when, through the dazzling silver-white light, he saw the police officer begin to be buffeted around as in an invisible wind. Ultra-short cropped hair began to lengthen and grow, billowing around the man's face in a riotous platinum mane that, by the time it was done, would come to well below his shoulders. There was a flash of pinkish-grey light that made spots dance before his eyes. He turned away, jerking his cape over Rin's head, least she be blinded by the coruscating display.

When the flash died down, his first thoughts were of Makoto and he was horrified to see her slumped forward, though gratified at least that the demon was gone. Still clutching the child in his arms, he raced to her side from across the courtyard. "Angel! Angel, are you alright?! Talk to me, honey!"

"Yes," she mumbled, her voice nearly inaudible. "I was just temporarily rendered unconscious, I think."

He caught her hand, hauling her upright until she was leaning against his chest, and began checking for injuries. To his intense relief he found none. Laughing weakly at her response, he pressed a kiss to her forehead, where her sigil still gleamed luminously, and another to one of the bruises on her throat above her velvet choker. "Thank Gaia it's nothing serious, sweetheart."

Still feeling a touch woozy, Sailor Jupiter blinked up at him stupidly and felt her heart give a little lurch. Rin had her arms clasped tight around Nephrite's neck, clinging to him like a small limpet. 'I wish…'

Sailor Moon let out an audible sigh as the power of the Eternal Tier finally died away, its work done, leaving a somewhat altered but definitely alive man before her. His eyes were still shut, but he breathed easily for a man who'd been sure autopsy fodder only minutes before. She shifted her gaze toward her fellow senshi. The picture she got was jarring, looking for all the world like a family portrait: husband, wife and child. Which was oddly appropriate, she thought, if what the man had said was true. She frowned, pushing back one silver pigtail, azure eyes narrowed speculatively. Was it?

"Sailor Jupiter," she called out. Three dark heads turned toward the senshi in blue and red.

"He's gone," Jupiter called back, sounding embarrassed and no little disgusted at her failure. "Not dead, but gone. Sorry 'bout that."

Nephrite scowled darkly. "He got away? Shit!"

When Rin glared at him and tsked disapprovingly at his profanity, he flushed. "Sorry for the language, kiddo." That 'kiddo' got him only another glare before she stuck her tongue out at him.

"I don't care about that," Sailor Moon said. "We'll get him next time." Sailor Jupiter nodded her approval of the plan and shut her eyes for a moment. She felt completely wiped out.

Sailor Moon paused for a moment, uncertain how to phrase her inquiry. "He said that you were…I mean…" Finally she wound up blurting it out. "Is it true that you're his wife?"

Sailor Jupiter's emerald eyes shot open in a flash and she gasped as if she'd been punched in the stomach. Had her ears deceived her? Exactly WHAT had he called her?

Nephrite groaned low in his throat. This wasn't how he'd intended to break the news. "It's true," he grated out, setting Rin back on her own two feet.

The little girl remained where she stood, staring bug-eyed at the man and the senshi, completely stonkered at the astonishing new notion that senshi could indeed have lives outside saving others and battling monsters. Next thing she knew, they'd be telling her that school teachers had lives of their own as well.

Nephrite lifted Sailor Jupiter's hand and carefully stripped off one of her long gloves. He slid a band firmly onto her slender ring finger before curling her hand closed around it as if to prevent it from falling off. That, though, was merely for show. It fit as if it had been made for her.

Some would have said it had.

Sailor Jupiter stared at her left hand for a moment, felt her breath catch somewhere in her lungs, and swayed dizzily due to a certain lack of oxygen to her brain. It had nothing whatsoever to do with the marks on her throat, which were, due to her senshi constitution, already starting to heal, and everything to do with the ring on her finger.

The wide ring was carved from a single segment of antler, the outside brown and rough with natural grooves, resembling nothing so much as the bark of an oak tree. The inside edge, however, revealed the faintest hint of its ivory colored heart that was polished smooth as butter and just as soothing against her chafed and scratched skin. A pink, oval-shaped diamond glittered richly on top, surrounded by the soft gleam of minute shell pink pearls.

On his own tanned left hand gleamed a similarly shaped diamond, larger and of a light apple green color, fixed in its mount by beads of old gold. It was set in a heavier and more masculine version of her own band, and the brown of its exterior was ever so slightly darker.

The Forest Queen and King.

Makoto paled, her eyes widening in sudden recognition. They were two of the most famous pieces of jewelry to ever come from the Jovian crown jewels…only the renowned Golden Laurel crown had been more well known. After her mother, the queen, had passed away, her bereaved father had put the rings away until the day his precious only daughter would wed. They had been stored deep within the root vaults of the Jovian Sacred Oak, a place that would open only to those of royal blood. So for such precious symbols to be in Nephrite's possession could only mean that…

"It's true…?" she said in a tone that was more question than statement, though had she been asked, she'd have said it felt…right.

He knew the exact instant that she realized it, when the storm of confusion passed and her eyes blazed with understanding. A faintly roguish smirk, tempered only slightly by the very relieved look in his eyes, curved his lips and he tugged Jupiter upward on her knees until she was plastered against him, hands splayed wide on his broad shoulders. With great deliberation he then planted a very firm, very deep and very, very carnal kiss on her unsuspecting lips, claiming them for his own. It was hungry and possessive and just a little bit wild, the kind of kiss that was much more than the meeting of two lips.

Rin acted reflexively, clapping her hands over her eyes, though she peeked shamelessly through splayed fingers and sighed. This was better than a storybook, better than a fairy tale. The senshi of the moon was equally taken, fanning herself lightly, hearts dancing in her eyes as her romantic side all but swooned at the sight. Both Rin and Sailor Moon were thinking the same thing. 'Wow!'

A disgusted cough broke the moment, at least for Sailor Moon, who turned around to check her patient. "Holy cow!"

He stood, looking as hearty and hale as anyone could ever have hoped for, and surveyed his surroundings. The ginzuishou, she noted, did good work. His pale grey eyes glittered like silver, his skin tone was good, and he now looked strong enough to battle an entire army of rowdy orphans. Long platinum hair streamed down over broad, brown-caped shoulders like a waterfall.

'Caped?' thought Sailor Moon blankly as her mind took a moment to process the input it was getting from her eyes. 'Wait a minute. Where'd that come from?'

"Oh boy," she gasped, recognizing his garb as being akin to that which Nephrite wore, although this Shitennou officer's uniform was considerably more elaborate with a jeweled, yet still lethal looking sword on one hip and gleaming gold braid and elaborate epaulets. He wore the mantle of leadership as naturally as he wore the cape. He also looked more than a little irked and she skittered away from him nervously. "They've gone and infiltrated the police now. Venus-chan is going to freak and Mars will blow up so hard she'll make Krakatoa seem like the planet merely hiccoughed.

Nephrite was still locked in his passionate embrace with Jupiter, the pair completely oblivious to what was going on around them and the fact that they had an audience. The newly found Shitennou looked on for a moment before his eyes lit up in recognition. Firm lips tightened into a thin, compact line.

"Nephrite," barked his superior officer. "Atten-tion!"

In a reflexive fashion, Nephrite pulled his lips away from his wife's and he looked around. He leapt to his feet, dragging Jupiter up with him as he snapped to attention. For her part, though, Jupiter merely blinked rapidly as she came to her senses and jerked herself away from his side, breathing hard and blushing furiously. Her lips were tender and swollen from his attentions and her hair was mussed almost beyond repair. She felt a sudden dual urge to hit both Nephrite and, for some reason, Sailor Venus. Not understanding the urge, at least as regarded Venus (who wasn't even there, for sweet Hera's sake!), she tamped it down for the moment but wished Nephrite would have kept his hot, kissable lips to himself.

"Kunzite?" Nephrite asked wonderingly as he stared at the sleek silver warrior. "Oh my god! It's you!"

Kunzite lifted his head and stood to his full height, staring somberly at his second in command. Sternly he said, "I am mindful of charging you with the duty to protect a princess of the Alliance, not to marry one. Pray explain then, Nephrite, how this came about?"

His whole tone and manner implied that the explanation had better be a good one.

Sailor Moon thought that was an excellent question. Distrusting Neil or Nephrite (She briefly wished that people didn't have so many identities, as it was all getting too confusing) as Makoto did, she would never have eloped now. But if she had done so then, well…marriage was 'til death do you part', and by her reckoning Makoto had died at least twice, once at the fall of the Silver Millennium and once because of Galaxia. So how could this be?

Nephrite refused to be cowed, placing an arm around Sailor Jupiter's shoulders. The green diamond in his ring sparkled vividly. "Good management. And Venusian Soul Bonding."

Ah…that explained the urge she had to smack Venus….sort of. Damn the Venusians! Makoto fumed, wracking her brain to try and recall what in the hell Soul Bonding might have entailed.

An odd, unreadable expression flitted across Kunzite's face for just a moment at the mention of Venusians. Then he turned and bowed stiffly to the green clad senshi. "Princess Angelita."

Rin's eyes slid to the well-kissed senshi and look of awe came into them. Both a senshi AND a princess. The only way Rin would have liked it better had been if it had been Sailor Mercury.

"Not in this time, Kunz," Nephrite interjected hastily as he saw Jupiter's hackles begin to rise. He glanced meaningfully at the avidly watching Rin. "I'll explain things later. But let me say that Jadeite and Zoisite are going to be awfully glad to see you."

"And Prince Endymion?"

"Ah, no…" He was cut off when, at the mention of a prince, Rin's eyes practically bulged out of their sockets. "Cooooool!" she squealed in spite of herself…and she never squealed.

Reminded of Rin's presence, Kunzite (aka Kane) scowled faintly. The little runaway minx knew his civilian identity. Bloody everlasting hell!

"Take her," he ordered Nephrite with a cutting look at Rin, who let out a squeak of alarm. "And bring your wife. We're leaving." He made another quick bow to Sailor Moon. "I thank you for your assistance, Madam Moon Senshi. I'm sorry, but we must leave. Do not attempt follow."

Sailor Moon's mouth dropped open and she sucked in a breath. It was truly amazing the air of quiet menace such softly spoken words could convey.

"Now wait just a darn minute here," growled Sailor Jupiter fiercely. "I'm not going anywhere with you two. And I'll be damned if I'm letting you take Rin away."

Kunzite stalked cross the courtyard and scooped up the little girl in his own grasp. Jupiter darted forward to intercept him, only to be held back as Nephrite caught her arm. "Don't push him, Angel," he said, having recognized the body language, even if the man's expression was nigh on unreadable. Kunzite was NOT in a mood to be trifled with. Of course, almost dying probably would put anyone in a rather bad state of mind. "He wouldn't hurt a child."

"That…thing," –his lips curled in distaste, and he looked to Nephrite for clarification– "It was after your lady wife, was it not? And it got away."

"Quit calling me that!" The Jovian senshi tried not to notice the hurt look in Nephrite's eyes as she denied his claim on her.

"It was and it did," Nephrite agreed stiffly, wondering just how badly Makoto was going to hurt him later for whatever Kunzite had in mind. He had no doubts that Kunzite was not going to take kindly to any delays by a recalcitrant senshi, princess or no. He also knew that 'I have to follow orders' wouldn't get him anywhere with his beautifully pissed off spouse. His heart sank.

"I thought so," Kunzite said, with a jerk of his head as if he'd decided something. "A thousand apologies, Madam, for my next actions." With preternatural speed, he whipped out a pair of regulation, police issue handcuffs and slapped one bracelet shut on Jupiter's wrist and the other on Nephrite's. Jupiter jumped. Sailor Moon yelped in surprise. Even Nephrite was startled by the action, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu.

"Not again!" Sailor Jupiter gnashed her teeth as she tried to jerk away and only succeeded in pulling Nephrite disturbingly closer. She could smell the scent of sandalwood and wood smoke, the scent of him, that always made her heart beat a little faster.

"We're out of here, Nephrite. Follow me," ordered Kunzite in a low tone. The dark-haired warrior had no honorable choice but to obey his superior officer's command. However, to an infuriated Sailor Jupiter who had to be dragged away bodily…and restrained, at considerable risk to Nephrite's own life and limb, from attempting to throttle Kunzite, the silver-haired, silver-eyed commander of the Shitennou had only one thing to say.

"Consider it protective custody, Princess."

(Author's Note: Kunzite's just asking for it, ne? To see where I got the idea for Mako and Neph's rings (one look and I knew that I had to include them somewhere. They were the only possible rings for this pair…being so foresty), see: h t t p / w w w . g e m s t o n e . o r g / g e m - f e a t u r e s / f e a t u r e i n t e r g e m - 2 0 0 5 . h t m l

I know I tweaked the designs slightly. But for the record, there are green diamonds. Their color is due to radiation exposure. They're both extraordinarily rare and hellaciously expensive…also very beautiful. And apropos of nothing in particular, I bet both Ami and Michiru would love that cool whirlpool-esque agate swirl ring on the same page. Happy jewelry drooling! )


	18. Let's Make A Deal

Chapter 18 – Let's Make A Deal

Some time later Makoto found herself on a sofa, awkwardly trying to feed herself while not disturbing a sleeping Rin, whose small head rested in Makoto's lap. She wished she could sleep as soundly as the girl. That however, did not seem likely, even though she was exhausted, feeling like she'd been dragged through a wringer backward.

The little girl had evidently felt that way too, falling into a deep slumber almost as soon as Makoto had fed her, only picking at the simple egg and fried rice dish she'd cobbled together from assorted odds and ends she'd found…and Rin had only done that much because Makoto had insisted she eat something. Makoto couldn't be offended. Not everyone's idea of comfort food was the same, and although the girl hadn't been physically hurt, it was emotionally exhausting to get involved in battles, even for a senshi. She could only imagine how traumatic it had to be for a child who couldn't defend herself to wind up at the heart of such an incident. Hera knew it was enough to put a crimp in anyone's appetite.

Although she'd been in a towering fury at having been dragged away from her princess (not that she'd divulged that little tidbit to either male, for Usagi's own protection), Makoto had been forced to bite her tongue, practically to the point of drawing blood, when she realized that her own expression of temper was scaring the poor child further.

Therefore she'd forced herself to calm down and simply prayed with all her considerable might and main to every deity she could think of that the others and Mamoru would arrive to protect Usagi, since she hadn't been given the opportunity.

Surprisingly, Makoto found that the act of pretending to be calm for Rin's sake had a very real calming effect on her. After all, Rei would walk through fire to get to Usagi's side, she knew. Surely she would come. Usagi would be safe. She had to be. And so was Rin.

Glancing down at Rin, Makoto sighed and stroked the girl's hair. Enduring a little discomfort for her was also the least she could do since the little girl was probably the sole reason that she was no longer handcuffed to Neil's wrist. For almost as soon as they'd arrived at their current location (a large and elegant home on the outskirts of the city that evidently was the ancestral home of the Kazuhiko clan, though only Kane, aka Kunzite, lived there now) the girl had, in the manner of young children everywhere, whined that she needed to go to the bathroom. Like now!

Makoto chuckled softly to herself. The expressions on Nephrite's, and particularly Kunzite's, faces had been priceless. They clearly weren't used to having small girls in the house. Being the only woman around, they'd immediately ceded care of Rin to her, and her freedom had come with it.

Well, she thought, giving a slight scrunching of her nose that made her resemble a testy shar-pei, except for the fact that Kane had informed her that the whole house was extensively security wired so they'd know if she attempted to, as he genteelly phrased it, "leave unescorted." Thus it was effectively a very gilded cage and she felt as if she was stuck in it with two very wild big cats, one of which was stalking her far too effectively and who knew it too. She had to figure a way out before she got eaten alive.

"Mmmm…that smells tasty, angel."

Speak of the devil!

An encroaching of a pair of chopsticks that weren't hers had her using her own as a weapon. Twin sticks of carmine lacquered bamboo smacked smartly across the back of the hand that was going for her rice stuffed omelet, making her smile when she heard the male squawk. "Get your own, thief."

"Mako-chan…" The wheedling tone had her rolling her eyes. "I said I was sorry."

"And I said no. This kitchen is closed. If you're hungry, go fix something for yourself. I said I'd cook for Rin and made enough for me. No one said I had to feed both of you too. I may be married to you…for now, but that doesn't mean I'm your cook or your servant."

"Well, if you won't share I'll find something else." Neil mused aloud, evidently not taking offense, or at least trying not to. "Maybe a sweet."

"The kitchen is thataway," Makoto directed helpfully, gesturing airily with her chopsticks. "I'm sure there's something sweet. Help yourself, but stay away from my dinner."

"You know, Princess, you're being petty," Kane said disgustedly from across the room.

Makoto shot him an evil look, wagging her chopsticks at him rudely. "I have every right to be unhappy about being treated like this. I believe kidnapping is still against the law in this country, _officer_. And _he_ let it happen without a single word of protest." She could feel her appetite going, rapidly.

"We all have loyalties to which we must stay true, Princess. You know better than most that he has to obey his commanding officer. So if you're going to be mad at someone, be mad at me. And," the police officer cum head of the Shitennou informed her, "I told you, it's _not_ kidnapping."

There was a snort from Makoto, who glanced down at the child in her lap. "Feels like it from where I'm sittin…" She broke off with a squeak and nearly upset her plate onto Rin as a kiss was pressed to the unsuspecting and vulnerable nape of her neck and she felt a large hand toying with her now blessedly (once again) auburn curls as warm lips trailed upward toward her ear.

Turning her head, she scowled up at Neil, who flashed his flustered spouse a heartbreaker grin. "Stop that, you letch."

He chuckled. "Now I just taking your suggestion honey, and being affectionate to my _sweet_ wife. What's wrong with that?"

What was wrong was that it made delicious little shivers run up and down her spine, but she couldn't, wouldn't tell him that. Though she suspected he knew anyway. Why else would he do it?

"Here," she said, shoving her plate into his hands. "Keep your hands and lips busy elsewhere."

He merely chuckled again and accepted the plate with an appreciative smile. "Thank you, sweetheart." Before Makoto knew what was about, he brushed a fleeting kiss on the top of her head before withdrawing, omerice in hand. He scooped up a bite and chewed thoughtfully. "Delicious," Neil finally pronounced, his husky voice making her feel like it was wrapping her in warmth. It dropped lower, for her ears only, and she felt his warm breath ruffling the delicate tendrils of hair nearest her ear. "But I prefer my sweet angel."

Gritting her teeth, Makoto shifted Rin in her lap, scooped her up, and carted the child out of the room. "Sweet Vesta, deliver me from all men!"

"You can put her to bed in the fifth room down the hall on the left," Kane called after her, intentionally keeping his voice low enough that he wouldn't awaken the sleeping girl.

Having seen the flaring of her nostrils and how tensely Makoto's jaw had worked, Kane frowned at his second in command, his brow furrowing. "Is she always so…so…"

"No," answered Neil before Kane could finish the question, flashing a wide, forced grin. "Usually her temper's like her element, one quick explosive flash and then it's over and done with. But she's more than a mite upset with me."

Although his memories had only recently been awakened, Kane, who was master at hiding his own emotions, also excelled at reading them in his men. He saw the pain lingering in Neil's eyes. "Why don't you tell me everything?"

Neil's face fell. "Shall I start with the prophesy," he said heavily, "or the part where Mars and she apparently hold Jadeite and me responsible for their deaths during the Moon Kingdom's fall?"

At the mention of a prophesy, Kane's eyebrow had arched speculatively, however, Neil's final words made both brows shoot up so far they practically disappeared behind Kane's silver bangs.

"I think you'd better start at the beginning."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto woke with a start, unsure of what had yanked her from the unintentional slumber into which she'd fallen. Then it occurred to her to wonder what time it was. Night had fallen.

While putting Rin to bed, she'd accidentally awakened the girl, who had begged her to lie down beside her and tell her stories. To reassure the child and get her to sleep again, Makoto had acquiesced, stretching out on the bed next to Rin and giving her the shortened, sanitized and much romanticized version of the story of Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen. It had worked like a charm, lulling the little girl into happy dreams, but the siren song of the soft pillows and a softer blanket had also drawn in Makoto. She dropped off just after Rin.

Unsure of how long she'd slept, Makoto rubbed her eyes and looked around. There was no clock, so she couldn't begin to hazard a guess at the time. Slipping from the room with stealthy grace, she left the slumbering child and shut the door, making her way back down toward the main portion of the house. Her ears perked up at the sound of voices. She could identify them both: the heart-rendingly familiar voice of Neil, and the vexingly familiar new one of Kane. Both men were deep in conversation.

Makoto froze outside the door, eavesdropping unashamedly when she realized Neil was talking about her.

"I didn't realize it until I met her again, but I've been waiting for her, only her, for years. If something were to happen to Makoto…" He let the sentence trail off unfinished, but the naked emotion in his voice couldn't help but touch Makoto's heart. She pressed a hand to her breast, feeling the organ flutter unsteadily in her chest.

"So I guess I just…sort of reacted," Neil was now admitting, sounding slightly sheepish. "Maybe overreacted."

"Yes, well, you always have had to rein in a tendency toward that, as I recall," Kane admonished gruffly, but not unkindly. "However, given the threat that the red witch represented, I can somewhat understand your feelings in the matter."

Flattening herself against the wall, Makoto strained to hear more. She winced as the floorboards gave a squeak underfoot, but when the men continued to talk, she heaved a silent sigh and pressed her ear closer to the wall. 'Who is the red witch? They'd better not be referring to Rei-chan?'

"She's the least of my concerns now," Neil was saying. "That damnable demon, on the other hand… Just the thought of Makoto offering herself up to that repulsive thing to save that little girl makes me want to retch, even though I know why she did it. She'd never have forgiven herself if a child had been hurt and she could have stopped it. Still, she's far too cavalier with her own safety. I should have taken him out when I had the chance, dammit! Now she's still at risk and could strike any time. Yes, she's under the same roof at night now so I can protect her, but how in the hell am I supposed to make sure she's safe when she's swanning around that campus all day long? I have classes to attend too."

"We could find her a safe house and perhaps she could quit her classes," Kane mused.

Makoto's mouth dropped open. 'He did NOT just say that, did he?'

"I don't see her liking that much," Neil sounded dubious, as well he might. "She's talked about her classes to me. She was almost giddy talking about it. It was clear that, even though it's still a bit of an old boys club, she loves being there. She loves what she's doing."

'Dang straight!' Makoto agreed with a brisk nod.

"Still…you might have a point, Kazuhiko-san. I mean, most women don't work in this country after they marry anyway, right?"

Evidently Kane had nodded, although Makoto did not see it since she was standing in the hall shell-shocked, because a second later Neil spoke again. "She'll give me one hell of a fight over it, though, if…when I tell her."

"Well, it's clear from what you told me," Kane said, "that the princesses will have to be protected, whether they wish it or not."

"How dare you?! Both of you!" Makoto leapt into the room and stalked toward them, bristling like a junkyard dog. Her mood had gone from zero to explosive in two point five seconds, possibly a new record. Standing there, arms akimbo, she could hear the blood pounding in her ears and a thin veil of red across her vision filmed both men in a ruddy glow. Had either man touched her then, they would have gotten a shock, as she literally crackled with furious energy. "Where do you get off making decisions about my future without asking me first?!"

Neil's head jerked up and a decidedly guilty look crossed his face. "Now Mako-chan. Be reasonable."

"Reasonable? Reasonable?! If I have to give up my classes, I might never have a shot again at a great culinary arts school. I'm late starting training as it is, because I couldn't apprentice while the government required me to finish high school! Plus, if I quit now I'll lose my scholarship, which, combined with my job is the only way I can afford to go at all. Nope! I am not going to give up my dream of being a chef, so you can just forget about me quitting my culinary classes! Not gonna happen!"

"Dammit, Makoto! You don't need to work! I can find a way to support us both. And as for your classes…that demon is after you and you seriously pissed him off last time. He got away and you can't honestly think he won't come after you again. He very nearly killed Kane. Hell, he's bullet proof. Giving up your classes isn't much of a sacrifice compared to your life."

"And just who says I'm going to die? Him? You? Just because my hair was green for a little while doesn't mean that _I_ am. Look, I have fought aliens, the Black Moon, The Deathbusters, The Dead Moon Circus, the Animates and Galaxia and the Wraith Lord! Oh…and went head to head with Neherenia. I've even got a black belt in karate. I know what I'm doing!" Seething, Makoto ticked each one off on her fingers, then crossed her arms over her chest and tossed her head, flicking her ponytail angrily. She conveniently omitted all mention of death earlier. She was no fool.

Neil's face had been growing steadily more wan as she recited her litany of former foes, color draining away from him like water from a leaky dishpan. His lips thinned angrily as she continued.

"I know how to fight and I'm not about to flunk or drop out of my classes because you've got a bee in your bonnet about that freak with the two tone face and the chartreuse up-do. I've looked after myself since I was thirteen and I can still manage to do so. Especially since my power-up." She glared at him defiantly. "Anyway, it's none of your business."

"The hell it's not!" Neil glared back at her. "A powerful and experienced fighter you may be, Makoto…Hell, I know you are. But you're also my wife," he grabbed her left hand and held it up before her face so that she could focus on the ring she wore there, "and I'm damn well taking no chances with your safety. In fact, after that laundry list of foes you just rattled off, you're lucky I'm not packing your sweet ass off on the next plane to Canada to stay with my folks and out of harm's way. Gods! It makes my blood run cold."

"Don't you even say that!" The prospect of any sort of overseas travel, or at least the kind requiring a plane ride, made Makoto shudder as she yanked her hand back. "Not happening! Ever!"

"Unbelievable! You're shaking at the prospect of a little plane ride to a place you'd be safer, but a demon that guts people who get in his way…no problem!" In a moment of extreme frustration, Neil raked a hand through his hair, churning it into a wild coffee-colored storm cloud. "I swear, you're going to turn me grey before my time, woman!"

Without thinking, Makoto grabbed the tip of her ponytail and tugged hard, scrunching the ends of her hair until her knuckles went white. "It's mutual!"

"Princess," Kane cut in, trying to smooth over the troubled waters. "I know it is upsetting to have your liberty curtailed, but…"

"But what?!" Makoto rounded on him, her green eyes snapping with rage. "You just encouraged him in his chauvinistic attempts to control me! You gave him ideas. I heard you! I swear to Hera, when I talk to Endymion, I am having him bust every last one of you down to garbage picker or bottlewasher! Especially you, Kunzite."

A sudden, horrible silence fell over the room and Makoto blanched, clapping her hands over her mouth, realizing far too late her mistake. Kane jerked to his feet, looking more than a bit irate with her, whereas Neil just looked shocked. Makoto began backing away, casting longing looks at the hallway which was out of reach.

Kane glared accusingly at Neil. "She knows where Endymion is. How is it that the senshi know the location of our prince and we, his own men, do not?"

Neil held up his hands. "The stars said nothing of this. I swear I had no idea. Otherwise I would have asked Makoto." He sidled forward, placing himself protectively between Makoto and Kane. "I'm sure she would have told me if she'd known I wanted to know. Right, sweetheart?"

The backward glance the man tossed her over his shoulder indicated quite clearly that Makoto had better agree with him, or else. The chill glitter of his eyes, however, also telegraphed that he wasn't exactly pleased with her either, as she had to have known that he would be interested in such information.

Stubbornly Makoto crossed her arms over her chest and admitted nothing.

Kane flung open a set of double doors which opened off the living room and stalked into his adjacent library. He slammed the old-fashioned style telephone smack in the center of his desk, jarring its bell loudly. Then cold silver eyes locked with Makoto's. Without further preamble he ordered, "Call him, Princess."

The demand made Makoto's chin jut out in a most defiant fashion. It was the same look Rin had given her earlier. The one that said, 'don't think you can push me around just because you're bigger'.

"What'll you give me if I do? You don't expect me to do it just because you ordered me to, do you? Hah!" She gave a sniff and drew herself up haughtily. "A princess does not take orders from the likes of you, you bombastic bleached blond."

"Makoto," Neil tried to reason with her, though his tone was fast becoming more irate than inviting. "This is Shitennou business. He's our prince and we have to know where he is. You need to call him."

"You can't make me." Though, her tone was uncompromising, Makoto had been thinking fast. "Unless…"

"Unless what?" However angry he was, and the answer to that was very since he disliked immensely having the 'royal' card being thrown in his face earlier, Kane was willing to deal. The prospect of finding the prince was worth it. "What do you want?"

"Oh, world peace, my parents to be alive, and Chef Nobiyura Masuhiro's top secret recipe for Egg Custard Soup," Makoto answered in the flippant tones of an experienced smart ass.

"What do you want that we can actually provide?" Kane said with a slight growl at her delaying tactic.

He didn't have to wait long.

"First, Rin goes back to the children's home tomorrow. She's not a prisoner, she didn't do anything wrong, and I won't have her being intimidated by either one of you." Makoto paused for the barest of seconds before making her most important demand, "Second, and this is not negotiable…in consideration for all we've done for this planet, I demand the unfettered ability to go to school and to work and to otherwise go about daily life without undue interference or hindrance from any of you…for ALL the senshi."

"Done."

Makoto nodded in satisfaction.

"Kunzite!" Neil snapped in ringing, outraged tones as he addressed his commander in the manner he was most familiar with. "Are you TRYING to get her killed? How can you promi…"

"Sit down, Sterne-san," ordered Kane with a motion for silence from his man. "Finding the prince is our priority, even trumping your marital woes. But I'm sure we Shitennou can find a means to protect your lady wife, even while meeting her requirements for freedom."

"But…"

"Neil," interjected his wife, silencing him by the simple yet effective means of placing a hand over his mouth and giving him a pleading glance. "Please be quiet. I have a phone call to make." She wasn't about to let that promise slip through her fingers.

With a jerky motion, Makoto sat down in front of the desk and picked up the telephone, dialing a familiar number and then drumming her nails on the desktop nervously while the call went through. There was an outside chance that no one would be there at all since it was already late, but she decided to go with the most anonymous choice first, Usagi's favorite home away from home. There was no point in letting anyone know about the Moon Princess' existence before it was absolutely necessary.

Kane jabbed the button marked speaker, and took the handset from her, hanging it up before settling himself in one of the club chairs next to the desk. Neil sat rigidly in the other. A buzzing sound filled the air.

When the call was picked up, Makoto realized that the Furuhata who had answered was not the one she'd been expecting. "Motoki-kun?" she blurted out in surprise, shocked that he was at the Fruit Parlor and not the arcade. Usually that was strictly Unazuki's domain. "What are you doing upstairs?"

"Oh, Mako-chan, is that you?! Oh thank goodness. Are you okay? The girls have been going nuts, but I hadn't been able to get out exactly why, except that they were scared for you. And that worried me."

Makoto felt a surge warmth fill her chest and smiled, although Neil frowned faintly at her actions. "I'm fine, Motoki-kun, honestly. Is the Odango there?"

There was a pause from Motoki's end of the line. Finally he replied, "Er…no. She was in even worse shape than the others. So Mam…"

Makoto cut him off in an instant, barking harshly, "No names, Motoki-kun!" A bit more softly she added, "Please. Just don't ask me why."

Back at the café, Motoki's face twisted in an unhappy grimace. Something was definitely not right. Makoto never referred to Usagi as 'Odango', and she had never, ever used that tone of voice with him. Now this? Something was definitely amiss. "Are you sure you're okay, Mako-chan?"

"Yes," she replied, shooting a cautious look at Kane. "Just tell me. Where'd she go? Is she safe?"

"The Odango," he answered carefully, "had to go home and rest, but…um…the doctor thinks she'll be fine. Her significant other took her. But I'm sure someone can get a message to her. Or him." Motoki waved frantically at Minako, who was busy pacing on the other side of the room and looking like a caged golden lioness with a missing cub.

The blonde paused, her eyes widening as she watched him windmill his free arm. She slipped to his side and whispered, "What is it?"

He covered the receiver with his hand. "It's Mako-chan."

"Oh sweet Aphrodite," gasped Minako, snatching at the phone. "Give me that!"

Motoki held the handset out of reach and hissed. "Wait, Minako-chan. Something's wrong with Makoto. I know it. And someone's listening in on the call. I think you need to take this in the office. I'll hang up as soon as you pick up."

A look of pure gratitude flowed over Minako's face and she gave him a split-second, rib-cracking hug before bolting through the 'Employees Only' door and pouncing on the telephone which rested on a battered oak desk.

"Motoki-kun… Motoki-kun? Are you there?" she heard Makoto calling, as Motoki still had his hand over the receiver. She knew an instant of pure, unadulterated relief. That was, unmistakably, Makoto…and she was alive.

"I'VE GOT IT," Minako bellowed into the receiver, so that Motoki could hear. In Kane's house, three people jerked as the high-pitched yell painfully broadsided their unsuspecting eardrums.

When she heard the click of Motoki's handset being replaced, Minako yelped frantically, "Venus here! Oh my stars and garters, Jupiter, I am so glad to hear your voice! You have no idea! We must have missed you by just minutes, but when Sailor Moon said you'd been attacked and then taken by those Shitennou, along with that little girl, well, we feared the worst! Especially when Mars didn't show and we couldn't reach her at all. Poor Mercury's been running probables ever since, trying to figure out where you might be, but…"

"Whoa Venus! Slow down." Makoto interjected, knowing she had to stem Minako's nervous verbal tide, or they'd never get anywhere. She was already alarmed to hear that Mars hadn't shown up, which was completely unlike her. "I'm alright and so is Rin. How is the Odango? Is she really safe? Motoki-kun said so, but I wanted to hear it from one of you. And what's this about Mars?"

Minako took a deep breath. "The Odango was really worried, not to mention exhausted. So she was given an escort home. Mercury, though, says she'll recover. As for Mars…I just don't know." She paused, letting out a hopeful breathy sigh. "Where are you, Jup-chan? Please tell me."

"I'm not sure exactly," Makoto answered truthfully. "And you don't have to keep calling me Jupiter, Venus. They already know who _I_ am." Makoto huffed slightly, reminded once again that the fault for that lay at Minako's door. The words, 'And Rei-chan too' hung unspoken in the air.

Minako sighed again. "I know… I know…"

There was a momentary pause, then Makoto, her voice tentative, asked, "Were all the children at the orphanage alright after I left so…ahem…suddenly? And after the fighting?"

At that, had they been present, the others would have seen a watery smile spread across Minako's face. "They were fine, Mako-chan. A bit scared, though, and slightly disappointed. There was a little one who said something about playing a game, but I didn't get all of that. Of course, after Sailor Venus explained to them that you had to leave to go help the Sailor Senshi, you were officially voted the coolest orphan ever. Well, maybe tied with your little friend…Rin was it? Fortunately Sailor Mercury was able to convince the head nun in charge that she didn't need to call in the police and the pope and report a kidnapping…though it certainly took some talking on her part."

"Told 'ya so," Makoto mouthed to Kane, shooting a disgruntled look at him. He merely gave an enigmatic shrug and stared back implacably. "Get on with it."

Makoto's offended glare could have peeled paint. "Look...the Shitennou are here and have a message and they made me call. They want to see Prince Endymion."

There was a loud sucking sound as Minako drew in a ragged breath. "The nerve!" she finally exploded, her already high pitched voice going shrill. "You rotten, scheming so and so's are trying to blackmail us by holding kidnapping Makoto and holding her hostage for Endymion-sama?! You can't DO that! How dare you?!"

Neil pinched the bridge of his nose, with a pained expression. "It's not like that, Senshi Venus."

"Then just exactly what would you call it?!" ranted the Senshi of the Morning Star into the receiver. "I heard about the handcuffs! And you two even took that poor little girl as well!" The slight hypocrisy of her accusing tirade never caused Minako to so much as turn a golden hair. "I don't know who you think you are…"

"Ahem," Kane cut in smoothly, his silver-grey eyes glittering. "As we explained to Princess Jupiter at the time, it is merely a case of protective custody until the threat against her is eliminated. That is all. Both she and the girl are well. I can personally vouch for Lord Nephrite that he would never hurt her." He pointedly ignored Makoto's derisive snort and the glower that passed between wife and husband.

"However," continued Kane gruffly, "the matter of Lord Endymion is another situation altogether. It is our sworn duty to protect him, and we cannot do that without knowing where he is. Understand, I cannot and will not allow the senshi to interfere in this."

Now Minako knew quite a lot about duty and sworn oaths. She thought hard for a long moment, then inquired suspiciously. "What if he doesn't want to see you?"

"Then he can tell us so himself. With all due respect, Senshi Venus, it's really none of your business. He is not _your_ sovereign…and this is not your planet." Kane's tone was ice cold, though a funny, very nearly pained expression had crossed his face for the barest instant before it was banished behind a stony facade.

Minako was offended. She hopped up on the edge of the desk, kicking one stylish booted foot at the already battered filing cabinet nearby.

"Well, with _all_ due respect, we've been the only thing saving this planet's keister for years. Then you suddenly show up and try to shove your way in? We don't know you from Adam or Eve!" She punctuated the sentence with a sharp bang of her foot on the metal cabinet. "So why should I trust any of you any further than I can hammer throw you? For all I know, you're just trying to set a trap so that you can draw us or Endymion in and kill us all in one fell sloop." Her tone turned scathing. "Heck, if I hadn't heard her myself I wouldn't even know that Jupiter was safe. For now."

"Oh for heaven's sake," Nephrite cut in with a snarl that could rival Makoto's best. "Why in the hell does everyone think that?! I'm hardly going to hurt my own wife!"

"Your wife…what the hell? Ack!" There was an audible crash as Minako, who was absolutely NOT expecting that, toppled right off the edge of Motoki's desk, upset a pencil cup, kicked over a waste basket and landed on the floor, her golden hair fanning out around her in a sunburst. Pencils and pens rolled off the desktop, pelting her like hard raindrops.

"Ow…" she whined, rubbing her bruised posterior. In that moment no one would have recognized her as either the tough senshi or the coordinated volleyball player she was.

"Venus, are you okay? Talk to me!" demanded an alarmed Makoto, who'd bolted upright when she heard the bang. "What happened?"

"I fell." The Venusian woman inspected her skinned elbow, another casualty of the fall. What did he mean 'wife', Mako-chan?! You'd better have a good explanation for this!"

"Can we discuss this later? Please? You can ream me out in private, V-chan," Makoto answered, astonished that Usagi had managed to keep that juicy tidbit of information to herself…maybe she'd been too tired to talk that much. Of course it was a moot point, what with Neil broadcasting it to kingdom come.

"No, she can't," Neil interjected firmly, warmly squeezing Makoto's waist, making her gasp audibly as his touch tingled across her senses. "You've done nothing wrong."

"You keep out of this," both Makoto and Minako chimed in together, a duet of disagreeability. The symmetry of the action, obviously the mark of much time together, made Kane chuckle softly. His chuckle deepened when Minako, with a Venusian's instinctive understanding, on hearing Makoto's indrawn breath, hissed suspiciously. "What'd he touch?! What'd he touch?!"

"Nothing I haven't touched before."

Neil's tone fairly dripped with insinuation, a childish…well, not _exactly_ childish, act of revenge against the Venusian, whom he still bore a bit of a grudge against for her actions on Valentine's night.

Minako snarled out an audible growl. "MAKO-CHAAAAN!!!"

"NEIL!" A mortified Makoto stomped on Neil's foot in response, grinding her heel down on his big toe to get him to stop. She gasped again when he merely splayed his hand possessively over her flat belly. She grabbed his palm. However, the diamonds on their hands winked up at her with lightning bug flashes of pink and green as if to underscore his point.

"You stop that, this minute!" Her voice came out in a nearly inaudible hiss. The air suddenly crackled with a static charge.

"Yes, do," Kane finally cut in, tiring of being a spectator (or was it the referee?) to the three way game. "You're giving me a headache."

As if to underscore his point, he dug into one of the desk drawers, removed a bottle of aspirin and popped two tablets in his mouth, swallowing hard, then began rubbing his temple. Now pink with embarrassment, Makoto turned away while Neil slunk back to his chair. Minako merely sniffed, "Sooooo sorry. We wouldn't want the oversensitive Shitennou…or maybe I should say the Guardian Knights?…to get a headache. Except I think maybe I do. Then at least _he'll_ stop touching Mako-chan!"

"What did you call us?" Kane exchanged blank looks with Neil, who shrugged. Makoto too looked slightly baffled.

"Never mind. It's not important."

"Well then why bring it up at all?" Kane asked a bit brusquely, irritated at feeling like he was missing a piece of a puzzle. Clearly the words meant something, but he didn't know what, which was maddening.

Minako's grip on the telephone receiver was almost a stranglehold, but she managed to check her irritation and focus. "I'll get word to Endymion immediately. However, he's a free agent. I can't make him show up, you know."

"We know," Makoto said, tapping her fingers restlessly on the desktop. "And all I promised was that I'd call. But they want to meet him, so maybe we can arrange something…"

There was a pause for a moment while she thought it over, then Minako said decisively. "Starlight Tower. Midnight. I make no promises on Endymion's presence, but I'll try. All three of you are to come." Minako's chirpy voice became a throaty mama-grizzly growl. "If Mako-chan isn't there safe, sound, unmolested AND uncuffed, don't even bother showing up, Shitennou, unless you're interested in revisiting the afterlife sooner rather than later."

"Understood, Senshi Venus. We'll be there," Kane replied crisply before disconnecting the call.

Left listening to the taunting buzz of the telephone, Minako swore an oath that would have turned Artemis's fuzzy face purple and slammed the handset back in the cradle. She raced out of the office, only to plow headlong into Motoki, who had taken her place pacing back and forth along with Ami in the now otherwise empty restaurant, waiting for Minako's word.

"Ooph…" Minako barely managed to keep herself upright, clutching at his apron. "Sorry Motoki-kun."

The arcade keeper staggered as well, but managed to hold his own. "Well?" he finally prodded, when Minako failed to answer. A manicured fingertip pressed over his lips stifled any further questions as Minako looked him up and down, as if he was a prize horse about to go to market. Briefly, Motoki had the scary feeling she'd be checking his teeth any moment.

Finally she nodded approvingly. "You'll do."

"Huh?"

Minako opened her shining blue eyes their widest, batted her lashes artfully and clutched her hands pleadingly together over her breast. "You're good friends with Mako-chan, aren't you, Motoki-kun?"

"Ye…es…" he answered slowly, wondering nervously where this was heading. "Of course. She's like a little sister to me. You all are."

"And you'd do anything to help bring her home to us, wouldn't you?" There was more eyelash batting.

"Well, yes. I guess so." Motoki wondered if she was hinting at illegal action being necessary. He hoped not, but with Minako one never knew.

"And Mamoru-kun's your best friend and you'd always want to help him and keep his secrets, right?" Long feminine eyelashes fluttered like the wings of a whole cloud of butterflies.

"Yes. Absolutely."

"I DO LOVE YOU!" she squealed. To reward his right answer, Minako threw herself at him, caught his face between her palms and smacked a kiss squarely on the startled man's lips. Now Motoki honestly loved his fiancée, Reika, but even a stone statue would have been hard pressed not to at least somewhat respond when kissed by the avatar of Venus, and Motoki was no statue. Yet while he was dazzled by the unexpected kiss, Minako struck, snaking a hand into his apron pocket, snatching the heavy ring of keys from within and hurling them toward Ami, who caught them midair. She also palmed his car keys.

Abruptly breaking the lip lock and grabbing his hand, Minako shot out the door, dragging a dazed Motoki after her. Ami, rather more sedately, followed in their wake, more than used to her friend's theatrics. The little bluenette even managed to lock up and switch off the lights as she went.

"Wait!" protested the blond man vigorously when he nearly face-planted after stumbling on an uneven section of sidewalk. "Where're we going?"

"Don't ask silly questions," Minako insisted, towing him toward the tiny ultra-compact car she knew to be his, having memorized that fact when she was young and had a hopeless schoolgirl crush on him. "We've got a very little time to work with and a lot to do!"

When she, the hapless Motoki, and Ami were crammed into the two-seater vehicle, Ami practically sitting on his lap, Minako gunned the engine, which buzzed like an angry mosquito, and peeled out from the curb, nearly wiping out some unlucky motorcyclists who happened to be in the maniacal blonde's way. "Hang on," she ordered. "It's going to be a bumpy ride."

Motoki moaned as she swerved erratically, splitting through traffic and traveling on the centerline. "Oh God! She thinks she's Speed Racer. We're gonna die."

"I've learned it's better not to look," Ami assured him calmly, keeping her eyes firmly off the road and possible death. "All I can say is that Haruka-san taught her. And we haven't died yet."

Oddly enough, that wasn't exactly comforting. The news that Minako had been taught all she knew about driving by the thrill-to-speed-happy racer, Tenoh Haruka, brought forth another moan from Motoki. "We're really going to die."

"Oh no we're not," Minako insisted, stomping the gas pedal flat against the floorboards. The car gave a leap as the straining engine whined. "Cause we don't even have the time." Minako banged wildly on the horn and pedestrians scattered like so many ninepins. "But while I concentrate on driving, Ami-chan's gonna tell you the new and improved and one hundred percent unedited story of the Sailor Senshi and then she'll answer any questions you may have. Next stop Mamoru-kun's place!"

"The senshi?" Motoki pressed back in his seat by the rapid acceleration of his vehicle. He shot a quick sidelong glance at Minako's determined face and the set of her jaw. And suddenly a light bulb went on. He could almost see a topaz studded tiara riding low on her brow. In the dull gleam of the streetlights, she appeared to radiate a sunny golden light all her own. And then there was the crimson bow…

"Oh no, it can't be. It just can't be."

He shot an incredulous look at Ami of the rare intellect and even rarer blue hair. Suddenly he thought about the girls, and it was as if scales blinding him from the obvious had fallen from his eyes. Ultra-strong Makoto with her energetic mien and bouncy ponytail. The ebon-haired Rei, who could and did read fire at the temple. Usagi with her gentle klutziness and singular…oh yeah it was singular all right…hairstyle.

"Holy heck!"

Ami could see the blocks all falling neatly into place for him and smiled sympathetically by way of apology as she hung on for dear life while Minako cut in and out of traffic like a mad woman.

"Fraid so, Motoki-kun. Surprise."

(Author's Note: I'm ba-ack! Between getting sick and going to Anime Expo 2007 and my poor dog getting sick, it's been a while. AX 2007 was lots of fun. I'm poor again because of it…too much good stuff to buy makes micatite a poor girl…, but at least my cold FINALLY went away and so did Paddington's seizures...knock wood...and I have lots of new goodies to watch. Guess my timing could have been better, though. Anyway, enjoy!)


	19. Midnight Rendezvous

Chapter 19 – Midnight Rendezvous

Surreal.

The word, the first which came to mind, didn't quite do full justice to the situation, but it was, he supposed, close enough. Why else would he be crouched behind smelly dumpsters in a darker-than-the-black-hole-that-is-Usagi's-stomach alley next to the Starlight Tower at such an hour, wearing full black tie formalwear, holding the hand of a superheroine, and waiting for kami only knew what to happen when kami only knew who showed up?

Yup. Surreal wasn't quite it, but lacking anything better, it would have to do to describe the bizarre twist his life had taken. Life had been so much simpler when the only concerns he had were fears of running short on tokens during the after-school rush and making sure the arcade's UFO catcher machine was kept stocked to bursting with stuffed animals and super-deformed, plush senshi dolls.

His rational brain could still barely comprehend that the bubbly, blonde teenager he'd watched over the years playing (and frequently losing) the Sailor V video game and giggling over her latest mad crush was, in fact, that self same Sailor V, aka, Sailor Venus, aka Princess Venus. If anyone had ever told him if she'd be royalty, the only type he would have guessed her as would have been a beauty queen. Though he'd more likely have pegged her as Miss Congeniality.

Which only went to show how little he'd known, he supposed. After all, he hadn't even realized his coffee-swilling best friend was spending his nights running around in formalwear and battling monsters. No wonder he'd needed a caffeine jag to function each day.

Unobtrusively Motoki tried to adjust the rather uncomfortable eye mask he wore and chanced another peek out of the alley. There, slouched in a deceptively casual pose against a lamppost, spotlit by its amber glow, she waited…Sailor Venus, one arm wrapped around her waist, supporting the other with which she propped up her chin. She was fingering the golden chain which was wrapped double around her slim waist, its absurdly decorative heart-shaped links belying its true nature as a dangerous weapon. Her exquisite face was set in the lines of a seasoned warrior prepared for anything up to and including death itself.

Definitely not Miss Congeniality.

Motoki mentally gave thanks for the fact that he wore gloves. They helped conceal the fact that his palms were sweating and clammy as he stooped there in the stygian dark, listing to the sounds of the city night around him. It was much quieter than he would have imagined, and somewhat eerie. He jerked faintly as a distant clock began to toll the hour, and let out tremulous breath.

"You okay?" Sailor Mercury whispered in his ear. Dumbly he nodded, forgetting for a moment that in the dark she could no more see his response than he could see her. "You know what you're supposed to do?"

"I got it," he whispered back. A more true statement would have been that he hoped desperately they would not have to fall back on Plan B. Because, of course, Plan B was him. He was the emergency contingency just in case everything went to hell. Not that he could forget his job, as Minako had drummed it into his brain with ruthless intensity.

If she gave the signal he was to abandon the scene, taking Mamoru's motor bike which had been stashed in the alley, get Tsukino Usagi and, inexplicably, her cat, and flee with them both to a safe house, the address of which he'd been made to memorize until he could say with utter certainty that he would remember that address until his dying day.

Minako had informed him that if for any reason the senshi would be unable to return for their princess, a woman with dark green hair and garnet eyes would come to his aid. The timbre of her voice as she said the words 'unable to return' had made his skin crawl.

"But how will she know to come?" he'd asked as Minako had busied herself with converting a mild-mannered arcade keeper into a modest facsimile of a masked superhero. Ami had been off removing the identifying license plates from Mamoru's motorcycle.

"She'll just know," Minako had said as she poured a bottle of temporary hair coloring rinse over his head and turned on the faucet. She'd begun to sing a fractured song as she worked at a fevered pace, cutting off all chance of further inquiry. "I'm gonna rub that dye right into your hair. I'm gonna rub that dye right into your hair..."

"Thank you, Furuhata-san" Mercury murmured earnestly, though her voice was almost inaudible. It brought him back to the moment and Motoki mouthed a silent oath as he realized he'd been nervously running his fingers through his hair. Hopefully the inky stuff hadn't come off on his gloves.

"For what?"

"For helping us while we get back Jupiter…and just for being you."

"Mercury-sama…" he began awkwardly.

Before he could say more, they heard the crunching sound of booted feet approaching. Mercury's gloved hand clapped over his lips as unerringly as if she actually could see in the dark. Behind his mask, the blood drained from Motoki's face. This was it!

As if conjured up by magic they appeared as the last chime of the clock sounded the stroke of midnight. The first person his eyes locked on was Sailor Jupiter in her green and pink fuku. Despite the fact that her unruly curls were for some reason bright, almost electric green and her looking somewhat different than common artist's depictions of her, he knew who she was.

With his newfound knowledge, he could see past the haze of Jovian magic and see Makoto in there as well. She looked strained and tired…make that very tired, but grimly determined. Her step never once faltered. When she caught sight of Venus, a faintly apologetic smile quirked up her lips. Venus, however, never blinked, though her eyes narrowed in warning.

Near to Jupiter's elbow marched a very tall, broadly muscled brunette warrior in spotless white but for his dark boots, the brown and indigo blue cape he wore, and his gleaming silver half armor and…SWORD?! Even though the jewel trimmed weapon might be ceremonial, Motoki had the sickening feeling that the man knew exactly how to use the thing as more than a parade decoration. And if that didn't do it, he wouldn't mind coming for you with his bare hands.

A thin film of sweat beaded on Motoki's brow. He found himself sending up a prayer to his ancestors for protection…and he wasn't even Shinto.

Two fierce looking blond warriors in similar uniforms, one with short, tousled hair and the other with long well-coifed locks, flanked the pair, marching in perfect step with them and forming an impressive phalanx. Each man sported his own sword as well, and Motoki caught a split-second flash from inside the jacket cuff of the lean, long-haired man that made him wonder if he didn't have a dagger or two up his sleeve along with a few other nasty tricks. His sly expression left one wondering. He didn't look quite as overtly dangerous as the short-haired, muscular-looking blond, however. That one looked like a hell raiser of the first order and he had the muscle to pull it off.

Leading the party, though, and walking slightly ahead was an aloof figure of silver and steel and stone that made the blood freeze in Motoki's veins. Though neither the tallest, nor the burliest, unquestionably he was _the_ leader. Even leaving aside the gem studded epaulets on his jacket which denoted his rank, he positively reeked of authority. The blade straight platinum mane of his hair which whispered around his shoulders should have softened his appearance, but it merely had the effect of reinforcing the mental image that this man was as much a lethal weapon as the long sword he carried.

All in all the men managed to give the clear impression that they were the baddest of the bad asses.

'Crap,' mouthed Motoki silently as he felt his mouth go dry. 'We're outnumbered.'

As if sensing his fears, Sailor Mercury gave his hand a quick squeeze of support. With her other hand she was tapping away at her mini-computer at a blinding pace, running scans of the five, especially Jupiter. Fortunately it had a silent running mode or the rapid-fire staccato clicking of a keyboard would have been a dead giveaway of their position.

"I think we'd better get out there and help her," Motoki hinted, peeking out again. The silver-haired man had stepped away from his men and approached Sailor Venus, who had uncurled herself from the lamppost and was eyeing her opponent warily. It was a little like watching two gunslingers coming together for a shootout.

Mercury shot him a startled look, though her fingers never missed a beat. "No," she hissed the order with unusual vehemence. "You are to stay here and safe and wait for the signal if it comes. I'll help Venus."

Turning all attention back to her computer, Mercury began wrestling with the machine which was not processing nearly fast enough for her taste. "I just…need…a minute. Almost…done…" Suddenly she tapped her visor, letting out a soft breathy sound of satisfaction as the data she sent flew on cyber wings to its destination.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Sailor Senshi Venus," Kunzite slowly approached, making no move to spook the wary senshi who was eyeing him as if he was unstable fulminate of mercury, ready to go off at any second.

"And you would be?" asked the golden senshi coolly, as if she couldn't guess. It was particularly irksome to her that, as soon as her gaze had locked with those quicksilver eyes of his, the part of her that was pure woman (or was it pure Venusian?) sat up and began practically singing the Hallelujah Chorus and her libido had followed suit. The part of her that was a warrior couldn't approve. All together the internal struggle for dominance made for one testy Sailor Venus.

"Lord Kunzite, Heavenly King of the Middle East and Commander of Endymion of Terra's personal guard." He bowed low in formal greeting, flicking his cape back with a flourish.

"Heavenly king? Well…aren't we special?" Venus sniped heatedly under her breath and snorted. "Pompous nit."

Kunzite caught the testy phrase and slowly smiled. Even he had to admit the title was a tad over the top, and the meaningless insult from the stunning senshi didn't ruffle him at all. After all, he got to enjoy the beauty that anger and its accompanying flush only increased.

His sultry smile made Venus' heart beat inappropriately faster, until she felt like the whole world could hear the betraying sound. Dammit all! What was wrong with her? No man had affected her like this since…well, ever.

Vexed, she forced her gaze over to the man who stood solicitously close to Jupiter and experienced a jolt to her nervous system that was completely different than the one that the platinum haired warrior had given her. Her friend's husband (and she was going to get to the bottom of that, or know the reason why!) looked like a dark, even more handsome version of Tiger's Eye, the Dead Moon Circus villain who had enchanted her friend when they were young girls. Which, she reflected, chewing on her lower lip, could explain a helluva lot about how things had spiraled out of control so quickly. At least Makoto was getting consistent, but why, oh why, Venus mourned, did she have to have such lousy taste in men?

The Venusian senshi flicked a quick appraising glance at the other men, but her gaze was, in spite of herself, inexorably dragged back to their leader. Which, she supposed, didn't say much about her own taste in men. Aphrodite's girdle strings, it was annoying!

"I thought you were merely bringing Nephrite and Jupiter." In particularly acerbic tones she asked, "Was it really necessary to bring along the rest of your little band of thuggish Merry Men?"

Kunzite's smile died, cut down before its time, a casualty of the uncalled for insult to his men.

Jupiter smacked her forehead in disgust. 'Subtlety, thy name is Minako-chan.'

"And I thought you were bringing Prince Endymion." Kunzite arched an eyebrow speculatively. "Yet I do not see him."

Venus bared a mouthful of gorgeous pearl teeth at Kunzite. "Free Jupiter first."

"She is not bound," he reminded her, a slight smirk playing about his lips. "And you can see for yourself that she is well, can you not?"

The implications of his words made Venus steam and she felt a decided itch in her magic forefinger. She could probably part that platinum hair at such close range.

"Venus, it's true," Sailor Mercury said, stepping out of the shadows to stand by her leader, much to Zoisite's visible delight. "I scanned Mako-chan. She's more powerful than she used to be for some reason, but she's perfectly healthy."

Sailor Venus paused for a moment, digesting this information. Although she was relieved by this report, she was still distinctly displeased and it showed. "And the child?" she finally barked, making Kunzite sigh.

"Also well and sound asleep at the moment. My housekeeper, after I agreed to pay her triple time, is babysitting her and, if you do not believe me, I'm sure that Senshi Jupiter will be happy to confirm this."

Azure eyes sliced over to Jupiter, who nodded in confirmation. "We lied and said she was my little sister. When he agreed to pay, she didn't even ask any questions. And he's agreed to let me take her back to the orphanage tomorrow." She jerked her thumb in Kunzite's direction.

It was an interesting piece of news, if true, but Venus didn't believe it could be all that easy. And she still had to get Jupiter away from…that man. Even if she wasn't physically cuffed to him, she could feel something more binding, though she wasn't sure what. Venus' thoughts were tripping over themselves in her brain as she tried to sort out everything, and she began to chew on her lower lip.

"And now, Senshi Venus," Kunzite cut into the blonde's erratic musings, smiling again as she jumped like a startled hare. "About our prince."

A bead of crimson welled up on Sailor Venus' lip as she bit down on it hard enough to draw blood. "I told you he was a free agent. I gave him your message. It's not my fault if he didn't want to see you."

Sotto voce she mumbled. "I can't say as I blame him."

Kunzite was staring, riveted, at the blood which stood out even on Venus' scarlet-tinted mouth. He quickly thrust a hand under his cape, making her tense and jerk Mercury behind her protectively. Smothering the urge to smile, he withdrew not a weapon but a small, crisp square of fine linen. "You're bleeding Senshi Venus."

Ignoring the proffered handkerchief, Venus swiped her glove across her lip, leaving behind an ugly rusty smear on the white satin. "No thank you, sir."

"As you wish. My lady."

His mildly spoken words, paired with a gently indulgent smile and a look of compassion sent a small tingle of excitement up Venus' spine and actually drew an unbidden answering smile from her. There was the tiniest thawing of the cold war between the pair.

Kunzite's smile froze in place, though, when Motoki, who had, due to vision problems associated with an ill-fitting mask, missed certain subtleties in the exchange between the two leaders, decided that the senshi could use his backup for moral support if nothing else. He slipped from the shadows and took up a protective stance between the two senshi, very close to Mercury.

"Oh look," Nephrite sniggered. "It's the Phantom of the Opera come to serenade us in the moonlight."

"Shut up, Nephrite." Makoto elbowed her spouse lightly in the ribs.

How it was that Kunzite had known at a glance that the masked man was not his prince, Minako would later wonder aloud about, since Motoki, with his hair dyed, was a more than creditable-looking Tuxedo Kamen, and the real Tuxedo Kamen was, of course, merely another incarnation of Endymion, but somehow Kunzite had known almost instantly that they were not the same.

After a quick appraising look at the newcomer, shot a disgusted glance at Venus. "You would bring outsiders into this?"

Sailor Venus winced visibly. Motoki's timing could not have been worse…but then it _was_ her fault for bringing him along in the first place. Though she could have throttled him for showing himself unnecessarily, she supposed it was the chivalrous part of his quintessential nice-guy personality that meant he would try to stand up for them as he'd agreed to do for Usagi.

The wave of disapproval coming off of Kunzite made the back of her neck flush in embarrassment and that reaction made her mad all over again. She wasn't about to be chastised by any man, least of all this one, for doing what she'd felt was necessary. Who did he think he was anyway? Her father? A cop?

"I'll bring whoever I please, wherever I please, whenever I please," she informed him with an air of bravado about her. "If you don't like it, feel free to leave right now, Lord Kunzite. I never promised you a garden of princes."

"You in the mask. Who exactly are you?" Kunzite, who had been vacillating between anger and amusement over his conversation with Venus, was suddenly all business now that a stranger had arrived. With a hand on his weapon, he directed a stare of wintry death at the hapless tuxedo-clad man, giving the impression he could see into the masked man's brain and didn't care for what he saw.

Seeing Kamen's lips turn visibly pale when attention was directed his way, Sailor Jupiter frowned. In the past he'd never reacted in such a fashion, not even against their strongest foes…not even when wounded. Whatever was the matter with him now?

Motoki half turned toward the Shitennou, cleared his throat, and tried to sound large and in charge. He actually managed the start of a speech that was at least fifty percent less cheesy than the average Tuxedo Kamen monologue. "I am Tuxedo Kamen, here to support and defend the senshi against their enemies." He lost his train of thought for a moment, though, when Jupiter, who had finally figured out why 'Tuxedo Kamen' seemed so off gasped suddenly and tried to cover the betraying reaction with a cough. It was a poor attempt at best and Nephrite eyed her suspiciously.

"What is it, angel?"

"If you are no foe of the senshi, then I have no quarrel with you, but…"

Motoki's second attempt at a speech was cut off as Jadeite cut in, growling. "I know who he is. He's the tuxedo-clad wonder boy who broke into my room and gave me shit about betraying Mars and Endymion, then ran away like a coward. And who carried off Jupiter the first night. When you're done, Kunz, I want a few words with him." Knuckles cracked ominously as Jadeite added special enunciation to 'words'.

Jadeite's words had the impact of a bomb on Nephrite; his head snapped back toward Tuxedo Kamen so fast he ought to have developed a case of whiplash. Sapphire eyes snapped with remembered rage at what the tuxedo clad man had done on Valentine's night.

"I've only one thing to say to you," Nephrite warned the tuxedo-clad warrior directly, directing a gimlet-eyed stare at Tuxedo Kamen. He slid a possessive arm around Jupiter's waist in spite of her attempts to wriggle free. "Stay away from my wife or else."

The else was left malevolently undefined.

Soft blue-green eyes widened behind a satin eye-mask. Venus hadn't had time to brief him on everything, so the news was something of a shock. He'd heard Jupiter had been kidnapped…or something like that. Had she been, in fact, forced to wed?

Tuxedo Kamen half turned toward Sailor Jupiter with a question in his eyes, his lips tightening when she blushed miserably and twisted her hands together, unconsciously rubbing the ring hidden beneath her glove. It was as good as a confession. Motoki scowled, thinking of his baby sister in a similar position.

"Surprised or disappointed? What the devil is with you, Tuxie?" Jadeite snapped, forcing the tuxedo-clad man to focus his way. "Got a fetish for short skirts and super powers? Is tonight Venus' and Mercury's night together or were you just planning on working your way through the senshi one by one?"

Motoki, blushing profusely behind his mask, recoiled at Jadeite's harsh words. He stumbled backward, bumping into Sailor Mercury who let out a soft yelp of pain when he accidentally trod on her toe.

"The hell he will." Zoisite started forward with blood in his eye. "There won't be enough left of him to try if he doesn't get away from Sailor Mercury by the time I count to three."

"One." He paused for perhaps half a second before smiling fiendishly and letting out a disturbing chuckle. "Two." A smoky blue crystalline bladed dagger slipped from his sleeve, dropping neatly into his palm. Motoki, too stunned to move, stared at the glittering blade with the fixation of a deer caught in the gleam of onrushing headlights. He was going to die and he didn't even know why.

"Stop it!" yelped Mercury urgently, lunging forward only to be brought up short when Motoki, in a fit of natural gallantry…and possibly stupidity, grabbed her wrist and thrust her behind him.

"Three. Time's up, Tuxie. Now you can play with me instead."

The crack of a whip split the night with a report like a gunshot and a gleaming gold chain wrapped around the knife blade, yanking it from Zoisite's grasp before it snapped back. Released, the knife whistled through the air over everyone's head to embed itself hilt deep in a tree trunk. Thoroughly shaken, Motoki practically dropped to his knees to worship the Venusian avenging angel who'd saved him. Kunzite let out a low growl

"Don't even try it, Laughing Boy," hissed Sailor Venus acidly, recoiling her Love-Me chain about her waist and clutching Motoki to her in such a manner that, had he been a pervert, he would have gotten both a great view up her skirt and a violent nosebleed. As it was, he just shut his eyes and prayed for deliverance. "He's a friend of ours."

"Yeah! Back off!" Mercury chimed in with a withering look at Zoisite, stomping a navy booted foot. The lanky Shitennou dropped back, snarling something under his breath about playboys in masks.

Kunzite glared at the orange-clad senshi, feeling a bit like swatting the pesky, clinging, masked fly away from his be-fukued savior. "That was uncalled for, Senshi Venus…"

"I think not," she retorted before glaring at the other Shitennou. "STAND DOWN!"

"They don't take orders from you, Lady Venus," Kunzite reminded her, his tone glacial. He did, however, raise a hand to signal his men. The signal, though, ultimately would remain ungiven.

"Then," a soft but firm voice sliced through the tension, "perhaps they'd better take them from me. As he's a friend of mine too, Shitennou, stand down. At once."

All heads turned to the source of the softly voiced but powerful command.

"Finally," muttered a cross Sailor Jupiter.

"Master Endymion?" Nephrite whispered hopefully, causing Jupiter to roll her eyes at the looks of growing jubilance that spread over his and Jadeite's faces. Zoisite continued to look purely furious, shooting Motoki periodic looks of purest venom. Kunzite alone remained stone-faced as they were approached by a figure in black and silver. He was eyeballing the dark-haired, midnight-blue eyed man closely. A soft grunt of satisfaction was the only betraying sign that he was pleased with what he saw…at least until he pulled his sword, carefully inclined it point-down in an act of ritual submission to his lord's will, and dropped to one knee, head bowed in fealty.

"Your Royal Highness."

As if they were puppets on strings, the other three warriors quickly followed suit, although Zoisite paused until Nephrite, who had already knelt, reached out with a hiss and thumped him sharply on his booted ankle. With one last quick glare at Motoki, the lean warrior lowered his head.

"I've so got to learn how to get 'em to do that," muttered Jupiter from where she stood, surrounded by bowing males. She smirked as there was a low growl from Nephrite, who had overheard her.

"Are you alright, Sailor Jupiter?" asked Endymion, his voice full of concern for what might have been done to her by his men. He could not recall them, but that did not absolve him of responsibility for their actions, at least not in his mind.

Seeing how serious he was, Jupiter sobered, nodding. "I'm quite fine, Prince Endymion."

"What she is, apparently, is quite married," Sailor Venus cut in, looking outraged. "And I want an explanation. If she was forced…"

"Oh, you'll get one," Endymion assured Venus, crossing both arms over his armored chest. "But first things first. Gentlemen, rise. I believe some introductions are in order."

Kunzite was the first to rise, snapping to rigid attention as soon as he sheathed his sword. "Kunzite, Heavenly King of the Middle East and Commander in Chief of your personal guard, Master Endymion." He followed up the introduction with a militarily precise bow.

"Nephrite, Heavenly King of the Americas and High Seer of Terra." The dark-haired stargazer followed his superior's actions, coming first to attention and then bowing crisply.

"Zoisite, Heavenly King of Europe and Chief Tactician of the Armies of Terra." He gracefully tossed back his coppery queue over one shoulder and bowed jauntily. "At your service." The way his gaze drifted toward Mercury left no doubt that he included her in that, and the petite senshi's cheeks responded, pinking up attractively.

Concluding the introductions was, "Jadeite, Heavenly King of the Far East and Weapons Master, Terran Elite Special Forces and Reconnaissance. My honor to serve, my liege." He flashed a wicked smile before he slid into his bow.

"How very prettily you speak…sometimes," came the unexpected, wry, and very female response.

Jadeite's head snapped up with a jerk, though he didn't quite dare break formation. "Rei! What the hell are you doing here?" he barked, scanning the darkness. "And where the hell are you?"

"And then his normal charming self reappears. Way to blow a secret identity."

"SAILOR MARS!" chorused the other senshi in varying degrees of warmth. Mercury was delighted. Jupiter was relieved. Venus was ticked.

Out of the night shadows came the red senshi, looking as tired as Jupiter and quite a bit more pale, her lips pursed so that she wouldn't smile at Jadeite's indignant outburst. "Sorry to be late. You couldn't expect me to stay away from this. It's Senshi business. But you could've made the meeting spot closer to home." She took a deep breath, her gaze flicking over at Jupiter. "I trust Sailor Moon is alright. I can see Jupiter is."

"No thanks to you in either case! So you finally decided to show up? Where have you been?" demanded Venus. "We called and called but you never showed. Sailor Moon could have died waiting for you!"

"Don't you take that tone of voice with her, Senshi Venus," Jadeite warned, his voice low and a bit menacing. "You have absolutely NO idea what she went through. Not a single frickin' clue." He spun toward Mars. "You ought to be in bed yet, Firebird. You're not nearly recovered enough to be out and about."

"I told you, this afternoon that I was fine."

"Uh huh." One of Jadeite's fists bunched at his side as the other one clenched on the pommel of his sword. To the group at large he said in decidedly long-suffering tones, "She got attacked by a damned demon and left half her blood behind on the floor, then had a vision that wiped her out so thoroughly that she all but passed out and was asleep for a good eighteen hours straight before she so much as twitched, but she's fine, she says. And then she walked how many kilometers in the cold and dark of night to get here? Gaia save me from stubborn women!"

Venus looked at Mars in an unspoken plea for confirmation.

Mars wiped a hand over her face, as if hiding the slightly sheepish look she wore, and shrugged. "I'm sorry Venus, but my Ojii-chan swiped my communicator, not that he knew what it was, and wouldn't let me get up or be disturbed, so I didn't realize I even had messages until some people and crows…" –she shot a disgruntled look at Jadeite, wondering how he'd managed to sway Phobos and Deimos to his side– "…stopped hovering at my bedside and went out."

"If we hadn't left, you'd for darned sure still be recovering," snorted the blond Shitennou. "Old man didn't hide the thing well enough evidently."

"You're just lucky it wasn't your idea," retorted Sailor Mars with a speaking flick of her ebony mane. "Jii-chan gets a pass for hiding it only because he didn't know any better."

Unwilling to get the old priest in more trouble with his spitfire granddaughter, Jadeite bit his tongue. 'Let her believe that.'

"He thinks I don't know where he hides his…ahem…special magazines," Mars sniffed, screwing up her face in disgust. "He always hides things in the same spot. But I still had to wait until Jii-chan and Yuuichiro went to sleep before I could sneak out of bed to get it from where he'd stashed it."

Pausing for breath, Sailor Mars happened to notice both the blood on Venus' glove and the tuxedo clad man beside her, who had been doing his best to disappear into the shadows. "Wait a minute. Why are you bloody? Is that from your lip?" She mustered up the energy for a fiery glare round the males of group. "Just what's going on here?" She rubbed her eyes and did a double take. "And if he's here," she asked, pointing at Endymion, "then who…?"

"Some excellent questions, Sailor Mars," Prince Endymion commented, his face grim as he examined the swollen and damaged flesh. "I believe I'd like an explanation to the one about Sailor Venus' lip. Did one of the Shitennou do this to you, Venus?"

This was it, her one in a million chance. If she said that the men were responsible for the injury, Endymion would…

Kunzite's intense silvery gaze locked with hers, demanding nothing less than blunt honesty.

Venus sighed, fingering her wound. Though she was probably the best storyteller of the group (she'd managed to convince her Home Ec teacher for the better part of a school year that she was allergic to a compound in scouring powder and thus could not possibly participate in cleanup), she was a lousy liar when she knew it would get someone else into trouble unjustly. She just couldn't do it. Rotten justice-loving conscience.

"They had nothing to do with it, aside from provoking my temper a little bit," she said, absolving the Shitennou of blame. "I just got upset, bit my lip and rubbed my glove over it. It's already healing anyway." She stripped off the article of clothing in question and its mate and made them both disappear into the pocket dimension in which she stowed her henshin wand, then dusted off her hands. "See…all better."

"Well what about my other question," Mars insisted, gesturing toward the faux Tuxedo Kamen.

"He came here to support us." Sailor Mercury broke her long silence to answer loyally as she helped the man in question to his feet. "To protect us, as he has always protected the Senshi." She patted Motoki's arm and hissed in his ear. "Maybe you'd better go now."

"If you say so, Mercury." Sailor Mars gave a weary shrug, too tired after her long walk to continue fretting about why there was both a Tuxedo Kamen and an Endymion. Someone would undoubtedly fill her in later.

"Some protector," sneered Zoisite, the green-eyed monster clawing at him. "He's afraid of his own…"

"Zoisite!" A cold thread of warning laced the word.

"But Prince Endymion, he…"

"That's ENOUGH, Zoisite," thundered Kunzite. "Be still!"

The coppery haired Shitennou subsided with poor grace, though he did groan slightly when Mercury shot him a look of prim disapproval and patted Motoki on the arm, clucking her tongue in sympathy.

"I'm _am _sorry, Prince Endymion," Jadeite broke ranks, scooping up Mars when she wavered unsteadily on her heels. He plunked her down on a broad planter, well away from Tuxedo Kamen, to rest. "My apologies. I'll just be a moment."

For her ears only, he whispered. "Sit down before you fall down, Mars baby. Pride isn't worth the bruised posterior." When she made no argument aside from a sulky look, he nodded in satisfaction and resumed his attentive stance, accepting Kunzite's forbidding glower as no more than his due.

"Sorry Kunzite. Endymion-sama."

"I can see we've much training to do in the area of discipline," was all Endymion answered ominously, making the Shitennou wince, especially Nephrite who hadn't said a word since his introduction.

Kunzite's fulminating stare at the men promised not inconsiderable pain when the disciplinary lessons came. "My apologies, Prince Endymion. I will see to it first thing."

"I think Mercury's quite right, Tuxedo Kamen-sama." Venus gave her old friend a gentle push toward the alley, hoping he'd take opportunity to leave before he got seriously hurt. "I doubt you need to stay. And there's no need to rouse the rabbit, if you get my drift. The planets thank you for your service."

The false Tuxedo Kamen nodded uncertainly, then slipped off into the darkness. The rumble of a motorcycle could be heard, revving up, and then the sound slowly disappeared into the night.

"Hi ho, Silver. Away…and the further the better." Jadeite said with a slight quirk of his lips that was almost a smile. Pleased now that the tuxedo man was well away from his fiery Mars, he felt like whistling in spite of the disciplinary threat hanging over his golden head, but cracked a joke instead.

"Okay," he added, cocking his head to one side and smirking. "I'll bite and say the obligatory Lone Ranger line just because it has to be said. Who was that masked man, anyway?"

Endymion and most of the senshi blinked, then blinked again as the reference sailed right over their heads. Sailor Venus, however, got it, and though her stinging lip protested, couldn't help but smile.

"Aw come on guys," begged Jadeite. "Surely you've heard that one."

"Now is not the time," Nephrite gruffly informed him. "And it was a lousy joke anyhow. Idiot."

"Damn."

"Attention!" Kunzite's voice was brusque, but it had the desired effect. Everyone fell silent.

Prince Endymion schooled his face in a mask of sobriety and intense concentration as he moved from man to man. A trident shaped design of braid the color of old brass trimmed each Shitennou tunic, but as he placed his palm on the center on the centerline of each in turn, just over their hearts, a golden light burst from his palm and beneath it, the braid began to shimmer and gleam until it appeared to be spun of pure, polished gold. The golden display continued to grow, enveloping Endymion's arm and slowly spreading until his whole body radiated with a golden halo. The senshi watched in wonder.

Finally Endymion pulled back and the dazzling light faded away, but a slow, satisfied smile spread across his face. "I think, gentlemen, we need to have a very, very long talk about what you're going to be doing from now on."

"My home, my prince, is at your disposal." Kunzite made the offer in an instant. "It has room enough for us."

"I'll say," grumbled Jupiter. Even though she'd known she had to return, if for no other reason than to get Rin, it was not her favorite place at the moment.

"Very well. We can go at once." He began to walk away, then paused, realizing no one was following him. Glancing back, he noticed his men were all standing rigidly at attention. Rolling his eyes heavenward, the prince sputtered. "Now they get discipline."

He spun back to meet them. "Dismissed."

Nephrite immediately took his wife's arm as the men relaxed. "Come on, Mako-chan."

"Oh no you don't, you…you…you husband, YOU! She's not going anywhere with you, without us!" Venus was putting her sandal-clad foot firmly down. She grabbed her friend's hand and pulled. Nephrite held fast, participating in a glare-off as Sailor Jupiter learned what it was like to be a meaty bone fought over by two wild dogs.

"There's room for the senshi, isn't there Kunzite?" asked Endymion.

"Plenty. And sufficient transportation too."

Nephrite, who had finally succeeded in extricating Jupiter from Venus' clutches, grinned smugly at his triumph until the tall senshi swatted him on the chest. "Behave."

"Then that settles it as far as I'm concerned. I'm sure that the senshi have their own questions that need answering at this point as well. Venus, would you join us as an ambassador, please?"

Venus let out rather crabby sniff, digging at a sidewalk crack with the toe of her shoe. "You better believe it."

Looking alarmed, Zoisite hurried to have an intense whispered conversation with Endymion. He needn't have whispered, though, as others were anything but quiet.

"Touch me and you'll be walking funny for a week, Jed!" Sailor Mars loudly threatened Jadeite, who had tried to pick her up and carry her. "I can walk on my own, thank you very much. Venus!"

The Venusian senshi raced to help, sliding her arm supportively around Mars' waist. Seeing her accept from someone else the help she was too proud to let him give, Jadeite scowled, rubbing his chin. "Stubborn. That woman is just plain mule stubborn."

Nephrite decided to refrain from pointing out that they were obviously a perfectly matched couple.

"It's the black SUV, license number 12-34, one block over and one down," Kunzite offered helpfully when he noticed the two senshi looking a bit confused as to where to go next, "and it's open." He pointed in the proper direction.

Without so much as a thank you, Venus hustled off, taking Mars with her. "Mercury, Jupiter! Don't dawdle!"

The prince appeared to have thought of something, tapping a finger on his chin as he intercepted the water senshi. "Sailor Mercury, would you mind terribly taking my car and looking in on Usako? It would take a load off my mind since I'm not sure I'll make it back tonight. And I'm sure Venus will fill you in on anything important, senshi-wise."

She nodded and squeezed Endymion's hand. "Of course. And if there's any cause for concern, I'll contact you immediately. Good night."

Seeing the pixieish blue-haired senshi accept the car keys and disappear into a fog of her own creation, Zoisite smiled weakly and saluted his prince, who nodded.

"By the way angel, if you really want me kneeling to worship at your feet, just say the word and I'm there." Nephrite spoke as they all began to walk in the direction of the vehicle. His words were spoken just loudly enough that the Shitennou could overhear him reminding Jupiter that he hadn't forgotten her earlier dig at his expense. He waggled his eyebrows with comedic lasciviousness, but the bad-boy look in his eyes as they locked with hers was very intense, very hot, and very, very male. She groaned, wondering how he was going to get back at her for that one.

"The view from down there was positively…inspirational."

"Ecchi!" hissed Jupiter, scandalized, her blushing face nearly purple as she clutched at her ultra short skirt with both hands. When he leaned in and nipped the tip of her nose, she bolted, racing to catch up with Venus and Mars.

Endymion and the Shitennou, save Kunzite, burst out laughing. Even Kunzite couldn't help smiling. And so it was that the first male bonding moment between the Shitennou and their lord came to pass.


	20. A Stranger In The Land Of Men

Chapter 20 – A Stranger In The Land Of Men

The trip back to Kane's house had been remarkably silent. Minako had been fuming from the moment they'd shifted back from warrior to civilian guises and she first spotted the all too recognizable form of the silver-haired Kane when he transformed.

"You!" she'd hissed accusingly, pointing a finger. "Urgh! Wretched cop!"

Kane's amused grin hadn't improved her mood any either, as she realized that he had known who she was all along. If there was anything Aino Minako hated it was being left in the dark about something and being played for a fool.

"Guilty as charged, I'm afraid," Kane chuckled, stroking her honey blond mane, drawing an icy blue glare and a delicate cold shoulder for his trouble.

"I can't believe you lied to me," she snarled, batting his hand away.

"Technically, Minako, it was merely an omission."

"And I always thought cops loathed technicalities. Call me Aino-san, if you don't mind, officer." Rivers of glacial ice held more warmth than her words. "Only my _intimate _friends are allowed to call me Minako. Or touch me."

The emphasis on the word intimate made Kane scowl, but he otherwise refused to take the bait.

Makoto and Rei had stared at the pair engaged in the frosty exchange, then at each other, then back again. "You know each other?"

"He almost arrested me," ground out Minako, crossing both arms over her chest. "On Valentine's Day, no less, may the goddess smite him for spoiling that blessed day! He threatened to have me charged with kidnapping, false imprisonment, and goddess only knows what else. I'm sorry Mamoru-san, I don't know what or who he is to you, but I just _knew_ I should have Crescent Beamed him straight to Hell!"

"Arrested? Over the handcuffs, right?" asked Jed, before laughing so hard tears came to his eyes. "And throwing the jar full of keys out on the lawn? Gad! I thought you looked familiar. Should've guessed it because of the bow. Hah! You're the party queen!"

"It's not that funny!" Perturbed, Rei flexed her fingers and called up an ofuda from somewhere on her person. "Stop laughing at her. Don't make me purify you!"

"I'm afraid he's already beyond that help," Zarek observed, eyeing the ofuda-wielding priestess with caution. "But I'm sure he's sorry."

"What he is is convulsed with hilarity," was Minako's sour response. "He didn't need handcuffs. He needs a gag!"

"Oh well, I'm glad Kane didn't wind up arresting you, Aino-san. But if he does, we'll testify on your behalf, won't we Jed?" The irreverent blond man, who was still wiping the damp away from his eyes, nodded as he tried to control himself. Neil grinned and squeezed Makoto, who let out a squeak. "After all, we were there and we aren't complaining."

"Yeah. Best party ever," wheezed Jed in agreement, his eyes lingering appreciatively on Rei. "You should've been there, Endy."

"I was otherwise occupied that night." Mamoru smiled, thinking back to the private romantic evening he'd had with Usagi until fate interrupted. Although he'd been very upset at the time, the results now appeared to be looking up. Funny how fate worked that way.

"Oh yeah?!" Minako's brows had drawn together in a scowl at Neil's words. She looked like she was contemplating severing at the wrist the be-ringed hand that held her friend. "I'll just bet you aren't complaining." She locked eyes with her friend, refusing to look away. "Kino Makoto, as soon as we're where we're going, we need to talk. I want some explanations from you and Rei."

Makoto winced as Minako used her whole name like a disapproving parent. No good conversation ever comes of the words, "We need to talk," and everyone present knew it, so it was a true conversation killer. There was nothing left to do but leave.

Chastened, the tallest woman boarded the SUV without a word. Minako shoved Rei in after her and then hopped in beside them, her look of death demanding that no man join them. The Shitennou, save Kane and Mamoru who were in the front, were left to squeeze in as best they could, wherever they could.

The uncomfortable silence continued to reign as they packed themselves into the SUV and made their way across town toward the Kazuhiko compound. No sooner had they arrived, then Minako grabbed Makoto and Rei by the arms and dragged them into the nearest room with a lockable door, which happened to be Kane's study, to let the interrogation (and possible butt-chewing) begin.

Finding himself locked out of his own study, Kane sighed and left to dismiss his housekeeper for the night and check on the little girl, who was still fast asleep. Mamoru and Zarek made themselves comfortable on the living room couch, while Jed and, especially, Neil, hovered near the door and tried to overhear the conversation…at least until Mamoru, with regal intensity, ordered them away, stating that the women deserved their privacy and a chance to work matters out between themselves.

Inside the closed room, Makoto cringed and went pale as Minako attacked. "How could you marry that man?! After everything you said he did, what in the hell were you thinking?!"

"We-ell," whispered Makoto meekly, feeling the onset of a killer tension headache triggered by the outraged shrieking of her leader. The throbbing behind her eyes and in her temples made her feel vaguely nauseous. "It's not like we ran off and eloped…I don't think. Honestly, I don't even fully remember it."

"What in Cupid's name do you mean by that? Are you ARE, or are you NOT married to him?"

"I…" Makoto slumped against the wall, at a loss to explain why it felt right. "I believe so. What I've seen…it's in my dreams. Bits and pieces, like a puzzle not put together. It would have been before, in my past life. But I don't think he's lying."

"Dammit!" There was a loud bang as Minako slammed her fist against the wall beside Makoto's head, cracking the plaster and rattling some very old, very valuable maps in their frames. "You said yourself he killed you and you were clear as the ginzuishou about that fact! That's gotta void a marital agreement."

"Don't yell at me," grumbled Makoto, picking the blonde's hand out of the dent in the wall and shoving it aside so that she would have room to slink past. "I've had a very, very hard day, Aino Minako. And a very long one. I'm too tired and it's too late to be bitched out by you."

"Help me out here, Rei-chan. Please!" Minako shot a furious look over her shoulder at the silent raven-haired woman behind her. It occurred to her that Rei had looked suspiciously unfazed by the pronouncement that her friend was wed. "Or did you know about this too and didn't tell me? Nobody tells me anything!" She stamped her foot, scuffing the teakwood floor and getting a certain charge out of knowing it was her enemy's home she was damaging. "Did someone declare this official 'Minako's a Mushroom' Month? Keep her in the dark and feed her shi…"

"Oh for the love of Serenity!" Sailor Mars cut off Venus's oath. "Calm down, Minako before you burst a blood vessel. I'm supposed to be the diviner here, remember? I sense things. So I knew something was going on already. Just not exactly what."

"And you're not even a little shocked?"

"I've already done the 'what day, what month, what year was this?' thing before, if you recall." The fire senshi gave an airy sort of wave, batting her hand about in the air before she used it to smother a yawn. "Of course we were all of, what, fourteen at the time? _That_ was shocking. Then. Remember, dear heart, she is of age."

"And he is a murdering traitor! And so is the blond one who's stuck on you Rei." Minako didn't hesitate to point out the brutal facts. "I don't know how you can forget any of this stuff. Let alone forgive it. They're threats to us all!"

"Look," barked Makoto suddenly, shoving her hand before Minako's eyes so that the woman could see her unblemished, no longer reddened skin. "All I know is that since he put this ring on my finger I don't feel so…empty anymore. Or itchy, dammit! He said it was a soul bonding! A _Venusian_ Soul Bonding, to be specific." The tall girl watched in satisfaction as her friend's cornflower blue eyes bulged dangerously at the news. "So if anyone's to blame, maybe it's you, Miss Perfect Princess of Venus! BUT I DON'T REMEMBER!!!" she thundered at the last, before letting out a pitiful whine, covering her eyes with her arm and slouching against a bookcase.

"Ow…my head hurts."

"Mine too," Rei moaned, rubbing her temple and slumping into one of the desk chairs. "Can't we table the screaming until we've gotten some rest? Please, Mi-chan? Please."

It was the closest Rei had ever come to begging and it shocked Minako out of her temper, forcing her to take a good long look at the Rei's bloodshot, weary eyes and Makoto's ghastly pallor.

An avatar of love couldn't help but be moved by the misery of her oldest and dearest friends, no matter how confused or angry she was at them. Minako shoved herself away from the wall and patted soothingly on the shoulder a sniffling Makoto, then reached up and plucked the beaded rubber band from her hair, fluffing out the mass of reddish curls. It was an unspoken apology.

"There…that ought to help some. You always wear your hair too tight. It can't be comfortable."

When Makoto didn't answer but her tensely held shoulders shook as if she was fighting back tears, Minako struggled to find something positive to say. Lamely she added, "I guess…it's good your hair is back to normal, Mako-chan. And Rei-chan's too. I guess a day can't be all bad if it was a good hair day, ne? Right?" she pleaded.

There was a weepy sniffle from Makoto, who spun about suddenly and hugged Minako tightly, laughing weakly through tears. "I guess you're right. And who would know better than the fashion and beauty maven of…of…"

"Of every place?" Relieved beyond words, Minako hugged Makoto back and flashed Rei a V for victory sign. She gave Makoto a gentle push into one of the chairs and then seated herself.

"Now, I shouldn't have jumped down your throat and I'm sorry about that. I was just so worried for you both and somehow it turned into screaming. I guess I must be more like my mother than I thought." She looked disgusted with herself for it.

"I know you're tired, but would you tell me what happened to you both, slowly and thoroughly, if I promise not to rant and rave and carry on like Artemis on flea dip day. But I have to know if we're going to protect one another and…"

"We'll not fail her," Rei vowed, knowing that Minako was speaking of Usagi. "Whatever happens, she'll be protected. We'd die for her…have done. And will in the future if we have to. You know that." In deference to her headache, Makoto only gave a tiny nod of agreement. But it was in its own way just as heartfelt as Rei's assurances.

Minako looked relieved. It was all she could have asked for.

Outside the study, Mamoru was staring at his assembled Shitennou. It was a bit eerie to not really know them, but to know that they knew him. Of course he knew them in another sense. His powers of psychometry, augmented by the kinzuishou, and aided by the ability to directly touch them, had assured him of one thing. The Shitennou meant no harm to him or the senshi.

"So," he began tentatively. "Does anyone want to explain to me why Venus and the girls all seem to think you are dangerous?"

Kane, seated on open windowsill, listened with interest. Having no answers, he was willing to take them where he could find them. Mamoru wondered if the man had consciously realized that even in his home, he was still 'on guard', his body a formidable physical barrier through which hostile outsiders would have to get to get at his prince. And were these the actions of the cop or the guardian warrior or were they one and the same?

Neil and Jed exchanged worried looks with Zarek. Finally Neil spoke. "Makoto won't tell me. She's been actively avoiding me."

"Rei said I killed her," Jed admitted, looking very pained before he hastily blurted out, "but I swear to you, I never, EVER raised a hand to her. Not even when she attacked me."

"Me either," Neil added. "We immobilized and put them to sleep them the other night because we were trying to protect ourselves and them from further harm. They weren't thinking rationally. They just went off on us."

"Well, they seem to recall that you destroyed the Silver Millennium. And betrayed me as well."

That drew a shocked hiss from Kane and rousing denials from the other three.

"That's not true!"

"We would never!"

"Betray you? I'd sooner die!"

Mamoru cast a speculatively look his men. "So they're lying then? Rei and Makoto are making up their stories you four marching against the palace. Of Zarek slashing Mercury's extremities with his daggers until she had bled so much she could no longer stand, and then stabbing her in the heart with a crystal? Of your double-edged sword, Jed, being shoved into Mars' gut and twisted so that she'd die slowly and painfully from internal injuries. Of Neil shattering the bones in Jupiter's knees and hands so that she couldn't continue to fight, then slitting her throat to finish her. Her last memory being of him licking the hot blood off his blade. Of none of them knowing what became of Venus because they'd already died first at your hands, gentlemen? Are these all falsehoods?"

"They said…that?" His facing having gone an unattractive shade of green, Neil looked like he was going to be sick any second. If that was what she really believed, it was no wonder she wouldn't talk to him about it. It made him ill just to hear it. "No…no…no. I loved…love my wife. I wouldn't hurt her."

Jed had broken out in a sweat and he was pale grey as a disembodied spirit. His fist clenched and unclenched spasmodically. "I didn't. We didn't. I know it."

"Oh god," moaned Zarek, swallowing hard. The sadism inherent in Mamoru's litany of charges made the very gorge rise in his throat. "Does Ami think this is so?" He turned on Jed and Neil, demanding, "Why? Why do they believe this?! What did you do?"

Seeing the pained response of the men to Mamoru's cruel charges, Kane couldn't help but speak up. "Milord, from what Neil-san told me earlier, Mars and Jupiter were completely distraught…not even rational at the time. While I am sure that they would not lie about such things, having no reason to do so, surely their memories, if that is what they believe them to be, cannot be taken as fact."

"So you think they're crazy then?" Mamoru frowned at that. "Suddenly and with no explanation at all."

"No. Not crazy," Neil mumbled, raking his fingers violently through his hair. "Not like temporary insanity. Just maybe…confused…or under a spell or something."

"There was so much happening so fast," Jed passed a hand over his face feverishly as he recalled that night. "There was a monster to battle. A big, ugly bat-winged thing. And then this pink haired freak of a demon showed up. He had to be kin to the one that attacked Mars at school. Maybe he exposed them to something that made them ill or tampered with their memories. Hell, I'm no doctor or mage, so I couldn't say. But I sure as hell know that I didn't kill Mars."

"Well I never killed Jupiter," Neil said heatedly. "I'd swear it on..." – his face contorted as he tried to figure out something strong enough to swear by – "…on Terra itself. I risked angering you, Kunzite and the entire Jovian and Silver Alliance armies to marry the woman I fell in love with. I…could…not…hurt…her." Each word was spaced out and given special emphasis.

As the pony-tailed Shitennou opened his mouth to add in his protestation of innocence, Mamoru raised a hand. Zarek's mouth worked silently for a moment, before he shut it, forced to settle for giving Mamoru a pleading look.

"As it happens," the Terran prince informed them matter-of-factly, "I believe you."

All four Shitennou blinked. Truly, this was unexpected. Heartening, but unexpected.

The dark-haired man smiled. "Yes. I read each of you when I touched you. I saw you. Your hearts. Your dreams. Your hopes. I now would beg each of you pardon for prying, but I had to be sure. The senshi have been good and loyal friends and I had to do it for their sakes. I was already fairly convinced I could trust you, but I needed to use the kinzuishou's power to be completely without doubt."

"It is not for us to question your decisions on such things," Kane said gruffly, fairly daring the others to object in any way. However, the other three were so relieved to actually be believed that they wouldn't have dreamed of doing so.

"But," Mamoru reminded them. "That means we have a mystery on our hands. Why do the senshi believe what they believe? Because I know them. They wouldn't lie about what they think happened."

There was a pregnant pause. Finally Jed spoke, sounding uncertain. "After Rei was attacked by that demon yesterday, she collapsed and starting having what looked like a seizure. Scared me half to death. And then in the middle of it she began speaking, or rather, something began speaking through her. She made a prophecy of sorts. Perhaps the clue is in there."

"Well, that would make sense that it came from her. She always was the psychically gifted one. Tell me about it."

The men all sat back and listened as Jed laboriously recited the prophecy word for word. "…and that's all it said," the blond man finally concluded his recitation. "Clear as mud, right?"

"Actually," Mamoru said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I do get some of it. A lot, really. The crystal future makes sense, but I'll have to explain it later. It's just too much to go into tonight. Obviously the part about blue Terra's lord waiting for his men would be about us." He gestured around the room. "And the elements most likely refer to the senshi. Water would be Mercury. Flame, Mars. Earth…well, if you twist it to refer to not the planet, but plants and dirt and such it fits Jupiter, sort of. She's the gardening nut and has some plant based attacks. And Venus…well, her attacks calls are mostly metal or love based, but they generally manifest themselves in light.

"But what about the Selene's daughter part? And why would the senshi be bound to her?" Zarek looked puzzled. "I'm no scholar on mythology, but wasn't Selene a name for the moon goddess? Which is usually either Diana or Artemis, depending on which pantheon you're talking. But they were said to be virginal. I don't know about either having a daughter." He scowled. "I wish my memories were clearer. They're getting there, but not fast enough."

That drew a chuckle from Mamoru as he thought of his favorite lunar bunny. "Oh yes, Selene did have a daughter. And the senshi are most devoted to her. Ser…"

Just then there was a loud snapping sound and a squawk at the window, like the screech of an angry alley cat. Neil and Jed flung themselves at Mamoru, heaving him over the back of the couch for cover and protecting him with their own bodies, while Zarek and Kane transformed, each brandishing their weapons while they scanned around for the threat. After a long moment, Kane peered out the window and made a motion with his hand before reverting to civilian form. "Just a stray cat. No real threat."

"A cat?" muttered a voice, muffled from being pressed into the floor and smothered by two heavy bodies. With the all clear given, Neil and Jed let a rather bedraggled looking Mamoru up, grimacing when they noted just how disheveled and dusty his clothing was. Evidently, Kane's housekeeper had skipped a few spots when she cleaned.

"Oops," Neil muttered, looking embarrassed as he tried to dust off his prince. "Guess we kind of overreacted, but better safe than sorry, right?"

When Mamoru didn't answer, the dark haired man groaned. Kane sliced a quick, glare at him that promised punishment later if he'd offended their master.

"We were just doing our jobs," he reminded his superior.

"Stay here," Mamoru ordered them. "I'll be right back."

"But where are you going?" Jed queried with great boldness.

Kane automatically began to protest. "Prince, I really believe I must advise that…"

"Just sit tight, all of you. I'll be right back," Mamoru repeated. "It's just that I love cats."

He jogged out of the house and into the night, grinning as he spotted the bright yellow-green gleam of two reflective feline eyes beneath a car parked street-side. He knelt down low until he was nearly face to face with the fuzzy white animal. "Morning Artemis. Fancy meeting you here. Just out for a walk?"

Dull spots of red stained the white coat as the little guardian cat actually blushed. "Good morning, Mamoru-san."

"Doing a little spying this fine evening, were we? You know, I'm sure that there were Terran laws against Silver Millennium agents. I'm quite sure of it."

Artemis' fur stood out like a brush as bristled and unsheathed his claws. He glared at Mamoru and hissed angrily, "My Minako is in there, and some of the others as well. I would be remiss in my duties as a guardian if I did not try to keep an eye on their welfare."

"Keep your fur on, Artemis," responded the prince with a chuckle. "I know why you did it and I won't bust you for it. In fact, if you'll calm down and play like a simple house cat, I'll bring you in with me so you won't have risk falling off the windowsill again to get your report. It's pretty narrow, what with Kane sitting in the way."

Torn between scratching him for the 'simple house cat' crack and getting a front seat view to everything, Artemis twitched his tail for a few moments before he emerged from beneath the car with a surly snarl. Leaping into Mamoru's arms, he growled. "That man of yours has too big a behind. It took up the whole space on the windowsill. I was forced to perch in the bushes instead and that's why I fell when a branch broke."

"I don't know about that," Mamoru laughed, carrying the feline back toward the glowing lights of Kane's house. "I'd swear I caught Minako checking it out a few times this evening, and she seemed to like his butt alright. Ouch! Ow…okay, no claws and I won't tease."

Removing his claws from Mamoru's arm, Artemis licked his paw and bared his fangs. "Let's do this thing."

"Just try to remember that you're a guardian," Mamoru reminded him, pushing open the door, "not Rambo. And for now, you're just a normal cat."

Four sets of wide eyes, full of questions, met Mamoru's when he reentered the living room. "Are you quite alright, Mamoru-san?" Kane was determined to be sure.

"Oh yes. I just like cats is all," Mamoru responded by taking his seat and stroking Artemis. "I hope you don't mind my bringing him in Kane-san, but whenever I know they're around, I just have to pet them. A little quirk of mine, I guess. Didn't I always like cats, even back when?"

"Laying it on a bit thick, aren't you," mumbled Artemis under the cover of a loud, loud purr. The pressure of Mamoru's hand increased in warning until the little white creature subsided, though he did use his claws to prick Mamoru's leg in gentle warning to ease up.

The Shitennou exchanged glances. Their lord had a thing for cats. That was…odd. But who were they to question it? Shrugging, they re-took their seats, though Kane firmly shut the window. He personally wasn't wild about cats, especially of the alley variety, and he didn't want any more in his house.

"So we were talking about the prophecy, weren't we?" Mamoru hinted, hoping to get the discussion back on track.

"Yes," Neil answered. "And if we go by what you said, I think there's no doubt about the last part. Golden jade and priestess of fire would have to be Mars and Jadeite." He tapped the man's shining curls as evidence. "He's as gold as they get. And if Jupiter is, as you say, 'earth', then the next part would obviously refer to us. Nephrite's a type of jade also, and I'm the star reader. And we're definitely bonded…though I don't think _she_ desires it yet." That last thought had him looking distinctly forlorn.

Mamoru thought he heard a snicker from Artemis and pinched him lightly. "I noticed Zarek getting pretty jealous over Mercury and I know for a fact that she has an Aqua Lyre. It's sort of a talisman. But the prophecy mentioned tanzanite, not zoisite."

"Tanzanite is another name for zoisite, specifically that of the blue-violet color variety found on Tanzania," said Zarek.

When the others gave him a strange look, he shrugged. "I'm a scientist. It's basic geology. And I wasn't jealous."

"Liar! His eyes are still green with it," Jed laughed, pointing out the obvious. "And he went after that goof in the tux with a vengeance. Overdid it a bit, maybe."

"You're one to talk," Kane reminded him. "You were ready to rumble with him too. Allow me to quote you. When you're done, Kunz, I want a few words with him." To the surprise of all, Kane was quite a good mimic, offering up a reasonably decent impression of Jed's voice and tone, complete with the knuckle cracking punctuation of the original, making Neil laugh and slap his knee.

"Aw, when I saw how pathetic ole' Tuxy was, I had to change my mind," Jed snorted. "No need to be jealous when Mars wouldn't have him on a bet." He let out a braying laugh. "I thought the guy was going to wet his cape there at the end. If that's the only ally they've had all this time, it's about time they got some real men around to help."

Seeing the perturbed look on Mamoru's face, Artemis, swatted the prince with a paw to remind him that now was not the time to get defensive about his alter ego's masculinity or lack thereof. With a glare, Mamoru commented, "I don't think the senshi would approve of you making fun of a friend of theirs."

"Our apologies, my prince," chuckled Kane. "It's just that I…that is, _we_ were relieved to see that he is not likely the sort of person that the senshi would be attracted to. It makes things much simpler, you see."

"What he means to say," Jed interjected, elbowing Kane in the ribs, "is that now we only need to worry about the first part of the prophecy explaining the fall." His voice dropped low, as if uttering a great secret for the first time. "Because old Silvertip here has a pinky rose stone symbol, has always liked Venus, and wants the way clear, so that he can bathe himself in 'Amor's' sweet light and then some, eh…"

His words were cut off as Artemis, with a feral growl, leaped from Mamoru's lap and lashed out with his claws, slashing deep enough to leave a pattern of bloody claw marks all the way down Jed's bared forearm. No man, not even that of a Terran prince, intimated things like that about HIS sweet, innocent ward and went unscathed. Never!

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Vicious animal! Turn loose!" Jed hopped up like a jumping jack and shook his arm, trying to peel off the incensed cat which was now clinging to him with all four paws. He was yelping at the top of his lungs, as Artemis' teeth were functioning like an automatic hole punch, digging in, releasing, only to dig in elsewhere a second later. "Call Animal Control and tell 'em we've got a mad cat here! Ow!"

The Shitennou made to forcibly remove the furious feline, but Mamoru bounced up shouting, "Don't hurt him!" Zarek and Neil froze in their tracks. Kane, who hadn't lifted a finger to help, was actually faintly sneering as if he was on the cat's side. Jed alone continued to shout and bounce around the room.

The senshi could not overlook the din outside the study for long. Minako flung open the double doors, stalking out into the room followed by two rather bleary-eyed brunettes.

"What in the name of all the forbidden planets is going on out here?!"

Without any warning whatsoever the cat dropped off from Jed's arm, hissed and swatted him in the legs, and then streaked toward Minako, who was staring in disbelief. She opened her arms reflexively and caught Artemis as he leaped toward her, clasping him to her breast. She'd been shocked to see him inside the residence, but figured it best not to let on that she knew him, let alone that he was hers.

Kane was on his feet in an instant to shout a warning, not wanting to see her getting slashed to ribbons by the aggressive little cat, but his words stuck in his throat as the beast went from feral to adoring in a heartbeat. Artemis purred loudly and climbed up onto Minako's shoulder, draping himself bonelessly around her neck like a fur collar.

"What did you brutes do to this poor animal?!" she shouted at Jed since he was the one making the most noise.

"Me?! I didn't do anything and that crazed beast leaped up and bit me. It ought to be put down for the safety of everyone." He cradled his wounded arm, surveying the bloody scratches. "Hell, it's probably got rabies. I'll have to get shots. Lots of shots." Both he and Mamoru shuddered.

"Poor widdle kittykins. Did that big, nasty meanie frighten you?" Minako was cooing at Artemis, scratching his ears and he was, in turn, nuzzling her neck and looking smug as only a cat can.

Minako shot a dirty look at Jed. "For your information, cats do NOT just attack for no reason. Since you all obviously do not know the first thing about cats, I am taking this poor defenseless creature home with me when I leave. Obviously you men can't be trusted with a pet."

"Defenseless?!" sputtered Jed indignantly, holding up his arm. Angry red scratches and bite marks ran the lower length of it. "Does this look to you like it's defenseless?!"

The whole conversation put Neil in mind of one he'd had with Zarek a few days earlier. The brunette man turned and silently mouthed, 'rabid badger', which nearly put the other man in hysterics.

Confusion reigned for a few more moments while Zarek composed himself enough to not break into outright laughter when he attempted to treat Jed's scratches. Minako employed herself with continuing to berate Jed to anyone who would listen, and the others watched.

Neil took the opportunity to go to Makoto, though he hesitated for a moment, still repulsed by what Mamoru had said that the senshi believed he'd done. Finally he decided it was best to show her his true character rather than simply plead his case. How could he disprove a negative, after all? But perhaps, with time…

After steering her toward the couch, Neil tugged his tired, stressed wife down to sit in his lap. She resisted for just a moment before surrendering, excusing the moment of weakness by telling herself it would just be for a little while and then she'd get up. Surrounded and warmed by body heat, supported by strength, Makoto leaned back to relax, her head tucked beneath Neil's chin and pillowed against his broad chest. One arm looped lightly around her waist, his fingers toying with her own. With the other hand he stroked her unbound cascade of curls as he would have a small child's, until her breathing slowed and steadied, the signs of strain eased from her face, and her eyelids finally fluttered shut in sleep despite Minako's scolding and Jed's nasal whines.

"Keep it down, would you?" he finally grumbled. "She's sleeping."

Minako turned to blast Neil, only to find herself struck silent. To say that she wasn't happy just then would have been one of the world's great understatements. It was with a brooding eye that she studied one of her strongest senshi, cuddled up against a man whom she could not bring herself to trust. Artemis was visibly no happier, his tail switching rapidly back and forth.

The words were on the tip of Minako's tongue to demand he unhand Makoto when Mamoru decided an intervention was called for.

"Everyone please. Be seated."

Stiffly, Minako sat, but she couldn't help but notice what happened next. Kane…no…Officer Kazuhiko, sat perched on the only windowsill in the room, keeping his body firmly between Mamoru's and the outside world. His casual pose was just that…a pose. However, with her warrior's experience Minako could see what was really going on. Evidently Kane's level of paranoia for his lord's wellbeing possibly exceeded even Minako's own. It was a daunting thought.

Jadeite, still grumbling about his wounds, had nonetheless, drawn Rei to sit beside him, keeping well away from Minako and Artemis. It wasn't exactly what Minako would have chosen for a seating arrangement, but what could she do unless she sicced Artemis on the miscreant again.

"Now," said Mamoru, "we're going to have to join forces, I believe, to get anything worthwhile done. Allies are always better than enemies and it seems that, as you senshi appear to have attracted a new foe, Minako, I would like to offer my men's services. I'm sure that you, Minako, as leader of the senshi, and you, Kane, as leader of the Shitennou, can work together with Usagi and I on the best method to defeat this new enemy and protect the public and the senshi in whom they appear to be interested."

Artemis hissed and Minako shot a dirty look at Mamoru for mentioning Usagi at all, however he remained unruffled. Kane noted the interplay and asked the obvious.

"Endymion-sama…"

"Please call me Mamoru-san."

Briefly disconcerted, Kane nonetheless nodded. "Alright, Mamoru-san. Who is this Usagi you wish us to work with?"

Mamoru grinned. "Congratulate me. I'm an engaged man. My fiancée's name is Tsukino Usagi. You might remember her."

The Shitennou looked quizzical.

Minako's glare, which just then flashed, of all things, golden, could have peeled paint and she could feel the prick of Artemis' claws on her shoulder as he fought the urge to rake them over the loose-lipped Earth Prince's face. "Shut it, Chiba!" she hissed under her breath. "They don't need to know about her."

"Mamoru-san," Rei began warningly, "I don't think that…"

Undeterred, Mamoru continued. "She's Serenity, the Princess of the Moon Kingdom. And of course, Kane-san, you've met her personally. She's also known as Sailor…ow…Minako! Don't hit!"

The irate blonde's fist was caught in an iron grip by a frowning Kane who put it all together. "Sailor Moon. Of course." To his credit, he didn't wince, though he certainly felt like it. He settled for shooting Minako a baleful look. "I'm going to have to ask you to restrain yourself from assaulting the prince, despite your predilection for such violence."

"Violence is it? I'll show you violence. I'm going to have to ask you to remove your hand from my person, Officer, before I'm forced to knee you in the…"

"Time out!" called Mamoru loudly, making a T with his hands and reestablishing silence. "Hold it, you two. First, Kane, that wasn't an assault. Coming from the avatar of Venus it was more of a…a love tap." He grinned amused at his own word play. "Isn't that right, Minako-san?"

"If you say so," muttered Minako darkly, yanking her wrist. She was visibly bristling when Kane continued to hold fast. "I'll love tap him so hard his whole family will feel it."

"And second," continued Mamoru with a smirk, "do you two want a moment alone for your clinch, or can we finish up first?"

Kane and Minako shared a moment of perfect synchronicity as they both blushed painfully, glared at Mamoru and jerked apart, stalking toward different sides of the room. Minako, however, turned back and, pulling a folded newspaper from her sub-space pocket, slapped the item against Mamoru's chest. Her upper lip curled in a sneer.

"Perhaps before we senshi make any hasty decisions about accepting help, our princess should see what you're going to do about your men's attention seeking behavior. After all, we can't afford to take any risks, and your men have already caught the attention of the press. Not to mention inflated themselves up with new and, frankly, stupid titles."

With that tart speech delivered, she stomped back to her seat.

"Puffed," Rei mumbled sleepily, "not inflated."

"Whatever."

Mamoru scanned the newspaper, then passed it without comment to Kane, whose face went stony as he sped through it. It was a special edition of the college press and though most of the articles recapped senshi history and battles, the headline story was about a sensational incident at the school's theater that had involved an incapacitated Sailor Mars, massive property damage, and a romantic and mysterious new hero they labeled a…Guardian Knight, protector of the senshi.

"So that's why she called us that," he said, tapping the paper. Kane passed it to Jed. "Care to explain this?"

Puzzled, Jed scanned it, his face scrunching up in disdain as he read the main article. "The baka reporter must've misunderstood me when I snarled at her in English. I said, _good night_, not _guardian knight_." Carefully he enunciated the words.

"Why would you even talk to the press at all?" Zarek looked disgusted.

"I didn't mean to," was Jed's quick defensive response. "But there was no quiet way out. The crowd was there and tugging at me. They wouldn't get out of my way and since she'd had that seizure I told you about, I was much more concerned about getting Mars to safety than with worrying about yellow journalism."

"And it's not my fault the reporter was there. I think she was part of the performance troupe." He frowned as he tried to recall. "She was dressed for it, in some costume. I was saying 'no comment', 'no comment', and then she asked me some damn fool question and I just barked at her loudly enough that she fell back and then Mars and I got the heck out of there."

Mamoru looked very grave. "This is serious. The press has always speculated about the senshi because it's hard not to when you've got a lot of pretty superheroines running around in mini skirts fighting mysterious monsters. But they've never, EVER said a word to the press, so the stories have mostly been colorful trash from the tabloid rags and everyone treats it as such. But if real reporters start thinking they can get a quote from someone in the know, no matter if it's just an off-the-cuff remark, they'll start hounding the senshi. That puts both the reporters, as civilians, and the senshi, who have to defend them, at considerable risk."

"I'm sure that's the last thing any of you want," he added pointedly, his gaze flicking over the women.

"Hah!" muttered Minako through clenched teeth, garnering a stern look from Kane. She smiled blandly in response, though a muscle ticked in her cheek.

Jed's defensive posture before his prince wilted into a more submissive one. "I'm sorry, Endym…er, Mamoru-san. I won't allow it to happen again."

Mamoru turned to Minako. "I think I understand your concerns, Minako, and I think you had a point. If you'd meet with Kane tomorrow, and Usagi and I will come too, I think we can sort everything out. Would you be willing to do that?"

There was no good way to get out of it, Minako realized. She nodded. Kane, of course, was willing to do as his prince asked.

"Okay then," Mamoru announced with a smile on his face. "Then I guess it's settled. Tomorrow morning at the Crown. Usako won't mind missing one day's worth of classes for something so important, I'm sure." Mamoru knew his fiancée pretty well.

He glanced over at Makoto, who was fast asleep in Neil's embrace, and at Rei, who was now slumping sideways toward Jed's shoulder and looked as if she was ready to succumb to slumber's call while sitting not-quite-upright. Deliberately, he yawned. "Why don't we call it a night?"

"I'll drive you home, Endymion-sama," Zarek immediately offered. "My car is here."

"Sounds good," Mamoru agreed, rising. "I'm beat. Good night all."

"Can you drop Rei-chan off if I give you directions?" asked Jed, staring at Zarek.

"Sure. The more the…well…the more crowded my car," the slender man replied, thinking of the little compact he used to get around the city. It was a lot more economical than it was spacious. Three men and one woman would be a tight fit. "But there's room enough for two if you need a ride too."

"Thanks." Jed poked Rei. "Wake up, baby. We're going home and then you can get some more beauty sleep."

"I wasn't sleeping," a groggy Rei lied, blinking owlishly as he slid an arm around her waist and steered her toward the door. "I was just resting my eyes. And don't call me baby, baka."

Jed chuckled at her grumpy tone. "Whatever you say, Firebird."

"You and your lady can spend the night here," Kane offered to Neil. "The little one is here anyway, and Makoto-san will want to see that she gets home first thing in the morning."

Neil nodded agreeably, adjusting his hold on his slumbering bride before somewhat awkwardly rising to his feet. Cradling Makoto against his chest, he bid everyone a good night and disappeared down the hallway.

As Minako watched, she bit her lip, nearly splitting it once again. It had taken considerable willpower to refrain from dragging her friends from the men's grasps and demanding to know where the daggers were that they'd used before. She just didn't understand how, given their pasts, Makoto and Rei could have given in to these…men.

'Traitors' her mind insisted on whispering.

It was not that Minako didn't understand the basic attraction. A quick glance around the room earlier had been enough to explain that part. For each man, no matter how strikingly different, was ridiculously attractive, each seemingly more handsome than the last. Heck, each time her gaze came to rest on the somber figure who was a study in stone and silver, she again felt her breath hitch.

Yes, she understood the physical attraction.

What she did not understand was the rest of it. For a wary warrior such as Makoto and an emotionally isolated type such as Rei to nod off in the arms of any man bespoke trust on a very deep, instinctive level. They had exposed themselves at their most vulnerable to these men. But to do so with those whom they themselves had said had betrayed them in the most fundamental way…it was inconceivable. It spoke of a level of trust of which Rei and Makoto most likely weren't even consciously aware. So how to explain it?

"Oh hell," she muttered, rubbing her eyes which were beginning to feel like they had sand in them. "Maybe it'll make sense after a night's rest."

As the room vacated Minako became eerily aware that she was alone with Kane, who was eyeing her, and particularly Artemis, speculatively. She tensed and she could feel Artemis's tail again began to swish agitatedly beneath the fall of her hair. "Yes?"

"You never once inquired as to whether that was my cat or not." It was a statement, not a question.

"I didn't have to," Minako said, staring at Kane appraisingly, "You are so totally _not_ a cat person. More like a dog."

When he looked first stunned, then very offended, she attempted to explain. "You're the most canine type I've ever seen, like you'd have a big fierce Akita or a Malamutt…or…maybe a hunting wolf."

He burst out laughing at her mangling of Malamute, and then at her audacity. "You're probably right about that."

She couldn't help the pout that twisted her lips. Kane slowly composed himself, though a hint of a smile uncharacteristically flitted around the corners of his mouth. Very formally he offered, "May I see you safely home, Aino-san?"

The blonde bit back the urge to growl, 'I don't know, can you?', but instead gathered the battered remnants of her dignity around her like a protective cloak. After deliberating for what seemed like forever, Minako condescended to nod in a regal fashion. "Very well. I accept your offer, Officer."

She marched out of the room like a queen, Kane following in her wake. She would have died if she'd known just how much he appreciated the view. Artemis, however, knew, and stuck his head out to bare his fangs at Kane, who seemed to show his own teeth back challengingly at the little guardian.

He drove her back to her lodgings in silence. When they had arrived, he slid from the car and, much to her surprise, opened the door for her and held out his hand to help her down in a bit of good, old-fashioned gallantry. At the touch of his hand, though, Minako felt an electric jolt go through her and her toes curled inside her shoes.

"Here you go," he announced. "Safe and sound"

The moon, full and round, shone down on them and showered the pair in a soft, silvery light. Artemis nipped Minako sharply on the ear, least she get caught up in romantic moment. She let out nearly silent yelp and reached up to her shoulder, flicking the cat with a finger as she appeared to pet him. He spat angrily and leapt from her shoulder, darting off through a gap in the high fence hedge.

"Thank you for the ride, Officer Kazuhiko, and goodbye," Minako bit out, fishing a key out of her pocket as she made her way up the walk.

"Good night, Aino-san," he called softly after her. "I'll pick you in the morning."

As the security gate closed behind her and she heard his SUV start up, Minako let out a shuddering breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding. She'd be seeing the infuriating but definitely drool-worthy man in all his glory first thing in the morning, and that he'd be coming to the door where all her man-hungry sorority sisters would see him.

"Mighty Aphrodite," she moaned, "how am I gonna survive that?"


	21. To Live Or Dye

Chapter 21 – To Live Or Dye

They could be heard coming long before they could be seen.

"I can't believe that you're the SANE one in that madhouse! Unless their shots are up to date, I fear I'm going to have to get a tetanus booster because of those crazed roommates of yours.

"Don't be such a baby. They barely touched you."

"Are you kidding? Look at my shirt. And the one practically drew blood with those claws of hers. She was worse than that damn cat. Hell, even Beryl never sported a set of dragon lady talons like that."

"Stop whining. It's just a scrat…wait a minute. Who's Beryl? Is she some skanky ex-girlfriend of yours?!"

"I don't want to discuss it."

"You owe me an explanation since you were the one who brought it up!"

"Well I'm sorry I did."

"Tough. Explain anyway."

"Not on your life."

"Fine! Be that way."

Even Usagi, who'd been happily absorbed in savoring the rare treat of a Western-style breakfast of pancakes and berries, couldn't help but overhear the bickering. She glanced up, dropped her utensils, choked on a bite of flapjack and began to sputter.

The front door to the Crown was held open and Minako, arms crossed petulantly over her chest, sailed in, her flaxen hair rippling out behind her like a stream of warm honey and brushing the peacock colored hem of her coat. Following closely behind her, with his coat over one arm, was an all too familiar warrior male with a Spartan hero's face, tangled silver hair that appeared to have been through a cyclone, and a shirt that had been ripped half open to reveal a muscled chest of truly drool-worthy proportions.

In spite of herself, and even as she aspirated half-chewed bits of pancake, Usagi found herself sitting up a little straighter, as did every other female with eyes in the place.

Mamoru openly gawked at his lieutenant, as he shifted in the booth to make room. Yet as he stared at the red scratches visible through the man's half-open shirt front, he experienced a strange sense of déjà vu. He decided to take refuge behind his coffee cup, though he couldn't help but ask the obvious. Anyone would have.

"What happened to you?"

"Please don't ask, my lord" growled Kane very softly, rolling his eyes heavenward. "It wouldn't be a particularly edifying tale."

Without asking, Minako snatched a berry off Usagi's plate and popped it between cherry-tinted lips, chewing with gusto. "He's just had a slight wardrobe malfunction is all."

"Hah!" objected Kane, fingering the rent in the sturdy white cotton and wondering if there was any chance it could be repaired or if the shirt was a total loss. Either way it would have to be changed before his shift. "It didn't malfunction, as you put it, until it was nearly ripped off my back by those hormone-crazed maniacs you call sisters."

"The only maniac I see is yours, egomaniac," retorted Minako hotly, clenching her jaw. "You think you're just the cutest little tick in boot leather, don't you? Well don't you dare pick on my sorority sisters!"

"Pick on?" sputtered the aggrieved law officer, raking a hand through his hair in an attempt to return it to some semblance of order. "It would be my fondest wish if I never had to see any of them again in this or any other lifetime." His tone was flat as he glared stonily at Minako's obstinately jutting chin. "But, sadly, I'm going to have to go back."

Mamoru gave him a raised eyebrow, 'why-the-hell-would-you-do-that?' look.

"That dragon-lady stole my hat," explained Kane with a shrug.

Minako let out a loud harrumph and fell silent, sulking, while Kane rolled his eyes.

Usagi swallowed hard and tried not to titter, knowing she'd choke again if she did. A laughing merry gleam, however, lit up her cornflower gaze. It was a rare and formidable man indeed who could get the last word with Minako. She fumbled in her purse, withdrawing a safety pin, which she held out on the flat of her palm as a humble peace offering. "Well, well…it seems we meet again, officer."

Kane forced his gaze away from the sexy blonde menace who vexed him more than he could say, studying the serenely lovely face of Tsukino Usagi nee Sailor Moon nee the Princess of the White Moon of Serenitas. A faintly troubled expression flittered across his face before he schooled its features back into their familiar impassive mask and bowed his head in a respectful nod.

"Good morning, milady. Officer Kazuhiko Kane, at your service."

As his intense silver-and-steel gaze lit on the safety pin, he slowly smiled, offering unspoken thanks. Usagi blinked as the unsettling feeling of melting ice prickled over her skin leaving her with goose-bumps. The man was dangerous, capable of making even an engaged and completely-in-love-with-her-destined-spouse woman tremble. She shivered.

No wonder he was giving Minako fits.

With one quick wave of his hand, Kane managed to secure the solicitous attention of a pretty young server who flirted shamelessly with him, lingering while she took his order of a single black coffee and the breakfast special. Minako, on the other hand was completely ignored. Seething for no good reason at the wait-tramp's blatant overtures to Kane, she finally interrupted giving the waitress the trendy coffee order from hell as punishment.

It would take at least ten minutes and two attempts to properly put together the order for a freshly brewed, half-caff, sugar-free, almond cappuccino with a double shot of caramel syrup, cinnamon and nutmeg, easy on the foam. Oh…and grate the nutmeg fresh please.

"That was mean," Usagi whispered in Minako's ear as the disgruntled waitress left. Kane was too busy pinning his shirt back in place to notice.

Minako smiled happily at the retreating waitress' back. "I know."

Chuckling softly, Mamoru patted Usagi's hand. "I believe it's time to get down to brass tacks now."

As if the words were the command to a great computer, Kane shifted into his business mode. He was a scarily efficient computer too, methodical and calculating. He had a proposed plan for every contingency. He suggested establishing formal patrols. He'd said he'd already decided to assign Zoisite to the creation of a communicator for the Shitennou that could also send and receive Senshi communication. Somehow between the time he'd left her and the time he'd picked her up, he'd compiled a list of known senshi enemies so that he could compare data to better prevent weaknesses that could put them at risk. He'd put together another list of press responses just in case. And so it went, ad nauseum.

His thoroughness left Usagi breathlessly impressed and Mamoru beaming like a proud papa. For her part, Minako almost felt sorry for the criminals whose cases Kane would investigate because clearly they didn't stand a chance against a man so driven.

Irritatingly too, at least to Minako's eyes, he seemed to possess eyes in the back of his head or an uncanny radar because he would drop all mention of anything that might remotely compromise their civilian guises any time anyone came near enough to overhear. The second, however, that they were gone, he picked up the thread of his conversation again as if he'd never left it.

So she was, maddeningly, left only to try to keep up, putting in the odd comment here or there and brooding as she toyed with her cappuccino. God she hated coffee!

Usagi had watched fascinated as plans were proposed, made or discarded and new ones offered, but she was not unaware of her friend's unhappiness. She could feel it bubbling poisonously just below the surface. The source was obvious as Minako's gaze never strayed far from the silver-haired Shitennou in cop's clothing.

When Kane said that he felt that the obvious thing to protect the best senshi from their demon foes was to pair them up with a Shitennou, Mako to Neil, Rei to Jed, Ami to Zarek, and, leader to leader, Minako to Kane, Usagi thought Minako was going to explode.

To save Minako from herself, Usagi whispered a suggestion to Mamoru that he go see if he could help Kane better deal with his torn shirt, using the excuse that it might keep the waitress from helecoptering around and disturbing them. Mamoru, skilled after years of deciphering Usagi-speak, nodded and ushered Kane away so that the women could talk in peace.

The immediate and nearly measurable lowering of the Minako's tension level made Usagi preen with satisfaction. She'd done good!

As she had with Makoto the day before, Usagi let Minako lead the conversation, rambling though it was, and thereby gained a very interesting picture of current Shitennou-Senshi relations. By reading between the lines she also figured out something Minako had steadfastly refused to say…that the last remaining scion of the Venusian royal family found the leader of Mamoru's Terran guard not only infuriating, but also hotter than the famed Oita Prefecture hot springs. Fascinating!

Minako, on the other hand, decompressed with each word until she was finally, for her, calm, a process helped along by her scarfing down without permission a goodly portion of Kane's unguarded breakfast. Under the two women's watchful gaze a bemused Mamoru exited the restroom again and begged the same waitress Minako had bedeviled for a second safety pin for Kane. Accepting it, he glanced back at Usagi and waved.

Usagi waggled her fingers at Mamoru across the room and he slowly smiled in return, heat warming his cool sapphire gaze as he blew her a kiss before disappearing again. The Venusian in Minako sensed and basked in the familiar soaring, heated rush of attraction and love freely given and freely returned.

Abruptly, however Minako froze. That sweet rush of warmth and tenderness and heartfelt emotion was so like what she'd felt between Makoto and Nephrite and Rei and Jadeite the night before. It had been tentative but unmistakable. At the time she'd just refused to call it by its proper name, afraid of what it portended.

Dammit!

The fragile realization of that truth was jolted away from her a second later as a feral scream split the air.

"YOOOOOOU!"

A pair of hands slammed down onto the booth's high back on either side of Minako's head, fingers digging into the padding, and she let out a soft, involuntary scream as she hunched her shoulders and neck, giving her best impression of a turtle pulling into its shell. The man's arms, though, pinned her in place in the booth. Escape was impossible. The suddenness of the attack had also startled a similar cry from Usagi, although she stifled it behind her hands.

A red-faced man with an unruly bush of dull, damp, straw-like jet hair glared down at Minako accusingly and spoke through gritted teeth. "This is all your fault!"

"Beg pardon?" she asked, mystified, wondering who in the hell he was. He looked so familiar, but…

The man actually growled low in his throat. "You sure deserve to, Aino Minako! Look what you DID!!!"

Usagi was staring intently at the strange man looming over her friend with fire blazing in his blue-green eyes. Suddenly her jaw went slack and she pointed, letting out a little screech. "Motoki-kun?! Omigosh…is that you?"

"Yes Usa-chan, it's me," he snarled before leaning over further into Minako's face.

"Y…your hair!" stuttered Usagi in shock. "Gawd! What happened to your hair?"

"ASK HER!" bellowed Motoki right into Minako's ear. She winced and clapped a hand over her ringing eardrum.

Without waiting for Usagi to do that, Motoki grabbed a handful of his own hair and held it out sideways for all to see. It was absolutely coal black. "You swore that stuff was a temporary rinse, Minako. Does this temporary to you? Reika tried washing it for three freakin' hours and my head still looks like the inside of an ink bottle!"

Minako eeped softly. "It was supposed to shampoo right out." She dug into her purse where she knew she'd stashed the box in her hurry from the night before. To her horror, she realized that the box said prominently in several different spots, 'Semi-permanent'. How she'd done it, she didn't know, but she'd grabbed the wrong box in her rush. Damn!

And, she realized when his eyes snapped, she wasn't the only one who'd noticed the wording.

"Heh...oopsie." She tried desperately to flash a winning smile as she prayed that the box would disappear by some magic. "Wouldja look at that?"

Unwilling to be swayed from his righteous rage, the arcade keeper answered darkly, "I have!"

Well that wasn't good.

His icy response had Minako squirming. "Well, ya know, I think it looks a lot better darker than blonde, which was kind of, um, er…wimpy."

The sudden light that flashed in his eyes made her realize that was definitely not the right thing to say. "That came out wrong," she squeaked hurriedly by way of apology.

Motoki was having none of it, flexing his fingers to strangle. "Dammit! Wimpy? That is IT! Minako, I. am. going. to. KILL. you!"

He really meant it, Minako thought with increasing alarm. Without even wondering why, she let out a semi-hysterical screech. "KANE! Help!"

Kane, who had been watching from a distance since the first scream, gave an audible sigh and waded in to break up the situation before it could escalate into bloodshed, however deserved. With immense efficiency, he plucked Usagi out of harm's way, handing her off to Mamoru, and then took on Motoki. But even as he did, he had to admit to a certain sympathy for the other male. After all, Minako did things to a man. She'd already driven him, the officer once known as 'the ice man' for his cool demeanor under fire, to swearing.

Only after he'd dispatched the distraught arcade keeper with the promise of a professional salon repair job for his hair at Minako's expense, the gathered crowd of onlookers under threat of arrest for loitering and/or disorderly conduct, and Mamoru and Usagi (who hadn't wanted to leave, dying to see what would happen next), did he get a chance to ask what he'd been intending to all morning long.

"After your classes, would you like to go to dinner and then start the first patrol, Aino-san?"

No good deed in this world goes unpunished. It was not so much his rescue of Minako that set her off, but the fact that she'd even called for him in the first place. She was a senshi, darn it, and should have been able to handle matters herself. So his words, innocuous though they were, made her bristle.

"Thank you, but no," she responded with turn of phrase she'd picked up from a woman's magazine. "I'm afraid that won't work for me.

His eyes narrowed at the flippant response.

She continued. "You see, I have a date."

The fact that it was a date with her school books, a carton of triple chocolate mochi ice cream eaten while in her rattiest (and most comfortable) pjs and slippers, and a DVD of Casablanca was neither here nor there.

"On a school night?" Kane was frankly disapproving.

Minako gave an imperious little sniff, tossing her head. "Who are you? My mother?"

Snatching up her purse, she sailed out of the café as grandly as she'd sailed in, leaving behind a cloud of sugared plum blossom perfume and a bemused, mostly male audience. It was only afterward that Kane disgustedly noticed she'd also stuck him with the check for her coffee, which cost nearly as much as his whole meal…more than half of which he'd never gotten to eat because she'd consumed it while he was in the bathroom.

_The sneaky little minx!_

The silver-haired officer stood there for a moment, clenching the bill so hard it left his knuckles white. That, though, and the vein which throbbed in his temple were the only outward signs of his frustration with her. His face remained stony. Suddenly, however, an idea occurred to Kane. With a wave to the waitress, he quickly ordered another breakfast special and sat back down to plot.

His resultant smile of satisfaction would have had the willful blonde quaking in her knock-off Manolo Blahnik boots if she had only known.

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"All done, Hino Sensei," Yuichiro bowed to the diminutive priest, shooting a quick triumphant glance over at Jed's as yet undone gardening before he inquired eagerly, "What do you have for me now?"

All morning long the one time musician turned temple acolyte had been in not-so-subtle competition with the newcomer to the temple, practically tripping over himself to best his opponent. Every chore assigned to the two men had become a race or an endurance contest. He had also been less than cordial, at least when his master wasn't around to see.

Jed, for his part, was more amused than distressed by his rival.

Rei's grandfather, the cagey old man, upon assigning work that day, had given Jed a conspiratorial wink even as he loudly scolded the 'scandalous boy' for keeping his innocent granddaughter out, "until all hours," and sentenced him to assist Yuichiro with his normal work. And then the Elder Hino had just as loudly proclaimed his trust that Jed's intentions were honorable. Yuichiro had been shocked and angry, but dared say nothing himself, for it was not his place to criticize and he knew it.

So Jed, despite having a huge lot of manual labor dumped upon him that morning and a hostile work partner, had been in a good mood. And he was learning a lot.

He'd never imagined just how much work running a temple could be. It was no wonder Rei's grandfather had delegated the rough physical work, which had, that day, been shoring up a crumbling stone and earthen retaining wall and replanting some shrubs which had gotten disturbed. In spite of the February weather, which was raw, cold and sullen grey, Jed had managed to work up a sweat.

He swigged down a gulp of water and wiped his forehead with a dusty hand before picking up his shovel again. Another few stones and he'd be done and could start planting.

From their perch on the black pine branch above his head, he could hear Phobos and Deimos squabbling softly together as they fluffed out their feathers against the chill and waited for him to finish. They'd been following him around since the day he'd brought Rei home. He wasn't sure how he felt about the feathered pair, but one thing was for sure… their unusually affectionate behavior toward him had gotten a response. Rei's grandfather had been highly amused. It had visibly aggravated Yuichiro. It baffled Rei.

And of Rei herself, that morning, there'd been no sign. Jed suspected she was hiding. Probably she was embarrassed at nearly falling asleep in his arms. But the thought of his allies, both feathered and not, and the memory of her in his embrace made him whistle cheerfully as he worked, even if he was coming in last in the two-man race.

A disapproving avian screech aloft drew all three men's attention and a chill swept through the air. Agitated, one of Rei's pet ravens took to the skies. As Jed watched, he noticed two newcomers in navy power suits striding briskly through the avenue of trees toward the temple complex. Uncharacteristically of most temple visitors, neither man had lingered to appreciate the ambiance. Evidently neither worship nor tourism was foremost on their minds.

The older of the two had clearly seen Rei's grandfather, but he said nothing, his face turning stony as he veered away from him toward the temple's living grounds. The second man, who was younger, lifted a hand and waved to the Elder Hino in mock apology before hastening to catch up with his fellow.

Jed gawked. The younger of the two men who'd crested the hilltop could have been his twin…or at least he could have been Jed in ten to fifteen years, as the man had started to show fine lines of age around his eyes. He also had an unfortunate faint hint of what could have been cruelty in the mouth. Still, the eyes were the same blue, the hair the same blond, and the face far too close to a mirror image. For the younger man it had been a bit eerie, like looking in the picture of Dorian Gray. Transfixed by the sight, he only came away with the barest impressions of the older man. Middle aged male, dark suit, darker expression, cold.

"Damnation," swore the elder Hino, heading quickly for the temple's living quarters. He paused just long enough to glance at the Jed-look-alike, who was sitting on the stairs.

"Honorable Master Hino," the senator's aide-de-camp began, "The senator asked me to convey his…"

Rei's grandfather cut off the oily speech with a single motion of his hand. "I respectfully request that you remain here, Kaidou-san, as this is a family matter. Do not interrupt. I will personally see to this."

As he disappeared inside, however, Jed heard an audible, "Dammit!"

The unexpected profanity from the wizened old priest had jolted Jed slightly out of his daze. "What's the matter?" he asked Yuichiro, drawing the shaggy man aside. "Who was that?"

Yuichiro's lip curled as though a foul stench of garbage had wafted under it and his tone was deliberately contemptuous. "That," –he waved a hand toward the temple– "was the esteemed Senator Hino Shigeo. Master Hino's only son and Rei-san's father."

Jed's brow furrowed in confusion. So the stone-faced man…er…senator was Rei's father and the disturbing look-alike must be one of his associates. He chanced another quick glance at the navy-suited blond on the stairs and amended his assessment. No…he had to be an underling, since he evidently didn't rate even an invitation into the temple itself.

Still, Jed didn't understand why a visit from the man's son would upset the little priest so much. "So why did he get so upset? I'd think he'd like seeing his son. And Rei too."

The shaggy-haired Yuichiro, shook his head disapprovingly. "Suffice to say, the master and his son are…" –he hunted for the most diplomatic term– "...estranged. That is all I will say, as I will not gossip about the Hino family. Besides, I have other work to do. And I intend to be done today. Unlike some people." He shot a disdainful look at Jed's unfinished half of the wall and sauntered away looking smug.

Now Jed was worried. Not because Yuichiro so evidently did not care for Rei's father, but because of her grandfather's reaction. The little priest was one of the most welcoming people he'd ever chanced to meet. Anyone who could take calmly seeing his unconscious granddaughter being brought home in the arms of a total stranger who unceremoniously announced that he was also said granddaughter's fiancé was not likely to be quick to temper. So to have such a breach with his own family…well, whatever had rent the Hino family in twain had to be big. And his Rei was caught the middle, though her very presence at the temple pretty much spelled out where her allegiance lay.

Come to think of it, Jed noted, he did recall her muttering something of a decidedly unfilial nature on the night they'd met. That explained a lot, actually. No wonder she was less than trusting when it came to men. She had father issues. Just great. He'd have to keep an eye on matters. And have a long discussion with the old man.

"Keep an eye on him," Jed mumbled quietly to Deimos, who hadn't taken wing when Phobos had. He surreptitiously pointed at Kaidou. Deimos cocked his head to one side and then fixed a beady black gaze on the other man, which was good enough for Jed.

Keeping well out of sight of his doppelganger, he ducked around the side of the temple to do a little quiet surveillance.

As he listened he heard voices rising and falling of voices in heated versus icy argument, but to his extreme displeasure he could not make out the details of words. It had nearly driven him to madness not to know, when one of the doors slammed open. He dove over the back of a cabinet, least he be caught spying.

It was Master Hino and he appeared as mad as it was possible for the merry little man.

It was with shock that Jed noted the state of Rei's face when she emerged a moment later. It was blanched white and her eyes looked dead, all the passion and fire that usually lit them gone, like a fire burned down to nothing but ash. She stared stonily at her father who wagged a finger at her. "Be ready tonight."

Rei said not a word.

Evidently Senator Hino interpreted silence as agreement, for he looked pleased as he left. Jed distantly heard him call, "Kaidou," and then he was gone.

"Are you alright, granddaughter?" asked the diminutive priest reaching for her shoulder.

As Jed watched, Rei jerked away before her grandfather's hand could touch her shoulder, and simply stared down at him with those eerie, dead eyes for a long moment before she ducked her head, turned, and walked away. Jed mouthed a silent curse.

The little priest echoed Jed's oath aloud, stamping one sandal-clad foot in a fury that nearly matched Rei's usual heat. Then quite suddenly, as if he heard a sound, though indeed there had been none made, he turned about until he was staring directly at the cabinet behind which Jed was hiding.

"You can come out now, boy. I know you're there."

Caught, but puzzled, Jed slowly eased out of his hiding spot. "How?"

The old man tapped his forehead with one finger. "I may not have her level of power, but my granddaughter is not the only one with spiritual ability in this house, if you recall. I can create privacy barriers and I can feel auras, especially when they're as strong as yours. She'd have felt it herself in an instant, if she hadn't been so…"

Suddenly he broke off, turning a very forbidding look on Jed, who had the grace to look even more embarrassed than he had before.

"You were spying on a family situation. Invading our privacy."

"I…I was worried for Rei. So yes, I observ…no, spied." Jed squared his shoulders, willing to shoulder the blame, but only for what was his due. "The way she looked when she came out… Well, I won't apologize for it. I love Rei and nothing should ever make her look like she did just now. Certainly not family."

He glanced worriedly in the direction she had disappeared and stepped that way. "I should go to her…talk to her." He wanted to hold her safe and secure until the dead look in her eyes went away.

The Elder Hino let out a short bitter laugh. An iron grip caught Jed's arm, jerking him up short. "As punishment for your eavesdropping I really ought to let you walk up on her unawares and let the girl sharpen that buzz saw of a tongue on you, but damned if I don't like your audacity. And more importantly, I believe you're good for her. So for both of those reasons, I'm going to save you from your foolishness"

"You leave my granddaughter be right now. She'll return when she's ready and safe to be around. And while we keep up our waiting vigil, I'll answer whatever questions you have. I'm sure you have several." His piercing gaze made the downy fine hairs on the back of Jed's neck stand on end.

"And you, boy, WILL answer mine."

'Uh oh!' Jed gave a nervous tug at the cuff of his robe as his subconscious screamed at him and warning bells jangled his nerves. 'Crap!'

The old man's wrinkles curved themselves enough to expose a wry, extremely cynical grin, making Jed wonder if the little man had read his mind. His next words left little doubt. "Got it in one, Jed-san."

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Makoto was in line and entertaining notions of doctoring up a bland-at-best cafeteria lunch when the cell phone in her pocket chimed. She answered it without a second thought. "Talk to me."

"Hi angel." Makoto felt her bones liquefy a little as Neil's slow, sexy voice rumbled to her. She'd been unconsciously anticipating hearing from him since they parted that morning, she realized with some shock. "Just checking in to make sure you're okay. I've only got a few minutes to talk."

"This cafeteria's a demon-free zone," she reassured him. "Even supernatural beings couldn't stomach the evil that is the mystery meat."

He laughed delightedly at that, then paused for a moment. "Tell me, are you up to going out to dinner tonight?"

"Why? Are you asking me out?" Makoto asked a bit suspiciously, though she unconsciously twisted a lock of hair around her finger and tugged on it in a dreamy fashion that she hadn't used since junior high.

"Well if you're gonna date someone, why not your own spouse? It's more efficient that way."

When Makoto didn't answer, nonplussed, Neil hastened to add, "Not that I wouldn't love to take you out someplace special, angel. Who wouldn't? But I can't take credit for this offer. The professor I TA for noticed I was wearing a wedding ring when I hadn't been before. And when he heard I got married, he invited us out for a celebratory dinner, though I think it's mainly that he wants to find out about you. At least, this is the first time he's ever made the offer in all the time I've been here. So it must be you."

"Me?" Makoto frowned as someone behind her in line poked her, but she never moved. She waved the person past her, inquiring a bit huffily, "What? Does he want to find out if I'm going to be some academic asset or mild-mannered faculty wife something? Because he'll be disappointed if that's the case."

Neil chuckled. "Nope. I think he can't help the nosey scientist in him. Occupational hazard for someone who's spent his whole career with his eyes glued to the heavens looking for the next big thing to come out of the clear blue sky. But he's a nice man for all of that. He said he'd take us to some restaurant called Demeter's Garden."

That news got Makoto's whole attention, so she never noticed when the cafeteria line suddenly swerved to move around her since she was fixed to the spot. She'd never been inside the place, but anyone who knew anything about the culinary world had heard of it. It was renowned for its fine French cuisine and exceptional service. Even the notoriously difficult to impress Rei, who, because she was her father's daughter, had eaten at many of the finest restaurants in Japan, had spoken well of it…and that even after her father had again pulled one of his famous no-shows for their dinner that night, which always soured Rei's mood. Makoto could only be suitably impressed.

She began to smile eagerly at the prospect. "Really? Demeter's Garden."

The sudden thawing in her tone made Neil smile. "Yup. So what should I wear? You evidently know more about it than I. Is it a casual dress code? Suit and tie? White-tie and tux rental or what?"

Makoto refrained from informing him that a certain acquaintance of his could probably lend him all the tuxes he'd ever need. "I think the tux might be a bit much…barely. Dark suit and tie, though, definitely. Demeter's Garden is really a nice place."

Her brow furrowed as she considered the contents of her own rather limited wardrobe. Most of her clothes were suited for being in the restaurant's kitchen, not its dining room. And at her height, she didn't even have anyone to borrow a good basic black dress from. For a moment she wondered if Usagi would lend her the Luna Pen, before remembering that Luna herself would skin both the Moon Princess and her alive were they to use the magical lunar artifact for such a trivial reason. However, before she could fret much more about it, Neil interrupted her.

"I've got to go, angel. I'll meet you after your last class today. Be safe. Love you."

The sound of an electronic click and then a sense of emptiness met her ear as he disconnected the call. Makoto heaved a sigh, then forced herself not to feel as if she'd been deserted by him. After all, how could she be depressed when she was going to Demeter's Garden?

The thought cheered Makoto and she hustled off to her next class forgetting all about lunch. Anticipating the prospect of a fine French dinner with the most handsome man she knew, any patience she might have had for a lonely lunch of cheap fish cake and udon had gone. She hustled off to her next class, wondering if she might be able to catch a peek inside the kitchen doors while they were there. At the very least, she'd have to at least give it the old college try.

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Just who in the heck did he think he was? How could he be so arrogantly possessive of her? Wasn't she her own person? Why would he act like that? What ulterior motives did he have? Why did he look so darned good in that cape?!?

Those were the questions that buzzed in an endless angry loop inside Ami's head as she attempted to go about her business that day. It was incredibly annoying (not to mention time consuming) to her to find that she kept having to repeat things because she'd done them wrong due to her distraction.

Still, much as it galled her, she hadn't been able to get Zoisite out of her head. He stuck with amazing persistence, as if, having crawled into her synapses, he'd pushed out rationality and good judgment and made himself thoroughly at home in her brain. Except for the few hours when sleep claimed her, she kept replaying the scene of the ridiculously good-looking Shitennou taunting poor Motoki-kun.

And apparently over her, of all the ridiculous things.

Balderdash!

In spite of what the others had repeatedly told her, Ami knew the truth about her allure…or lack thereof. Mizuno Ami was not a stunning glamour-queen like Minako, nor an exotic beauty like Rei. She hadn't the tall, athletic grace and presence of Makoto, or the appealing innocence and delicate, fragile beauty of Usagi. She was just plain, steady, sturdy Ami, who was known for her brains more than her beauty, and who'd broken out in hives the one (and thank goodness, only) time she'd ever received a love letter.

Ami was not, she knew, sort of girl who inspired any type of jealous romantic emotion in people. To even suggest it was absurd. It was incomprehensible. It was infuriating. There had to be something she was missing.

"How dared he? What game is he up to?" she found herself muttering aloud, to her very great disgust. "Augh! Arrogant prima donna! Out of my brain! OUT!" Her head thunked down onto the metal lab table, making glassware chatter.

"Everything okay?" inquired her bemused lab partner, peering at her myopically over the rim of his spectacles. He decided not to mention that she'd been uncharacteristically staring off into space for the last fifteen minutes or so. Again.

Ami flushed, humiliated, and forced herself to get back to work. She had experiments to perform and lab reports to write…reports which should have already been done but for her distraction that day. Still, her brain kept going round and round. And then finally she had an epiphany. Unfortunately for her lab report, it was not about chemical catalysts…though it definitely concerned chemistry in a round about sort of fashion.

She, Mizuno Ami, needed a life.

Minako, she reflected, had been bluntly telling her that for years, reminding her that they needed to enjoy being young while they were young and not be afraid of romance. Even Usagi, who was more kind in how she'd put it, had intimated that Ami hid in her lab to avoid socializing. She'd always denied it, but it was more true than Ami liked to admit. Still, if she'd had any sort of romantic life now, she was sure that the annoyingly possessive Shitennou wouldn't have hijacked her brain so easily.

Clearly if she wanted her brain back (and she needed it more than ever now), she needed to force him out of it. For just a moment Ami thought she would have given anything to have a love letter to read. Itchy, weepy hives left a body no room for fretting about anyone else. However, lacking that the quickest way she could think of to do that was to replace him in her thoughts with something else…or someone else. After all, if you couldn't love the one you wanted, then love the one you're with. Right?

"Oh gods," she muttered feverishly, kneading her temple. "Now I'm mangling quotes like Minako. I need my brain back. And I don't want him!"

Zoisite's face, his perfectly bishonen features all but screaming, "You can't forget about me so easily, princess," danced before her eyes maddeningly and Ami let out a small shriek of frustration, pounding her fist on her textbook, oblivious to the fact that her senshi strength, normally so well controlled, had cracked and split the poor thing's spine.

Who? Who could she replace him with?

That was when the second epiphany hit as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Of course.

A slow, unintentionally sultry smile curved Ami's lips as she blithely abandoned her beakers, Bunsen burner and befuddled lab partner and went in search of someone who was more than up to the task at hand.

She finally tracked him down in the library. His head was bent over a stack of periodicals, industriously taking notes that, by what she could see, looked like plans for an electronic device of some sort. Intellectual curiosity momentarily distracted her from her task and Ami bent over to have a look, unintentionally brushing his shoulder.

He reacted as though she'd tazed him. The poor man jumped about a foot, then scrambled to grab his papers as they scattered. As hastily as possible he stuffed them out of sight beneath his books.

"I didn't mean to spoil your research, Veridian-san," Ami whispered contritely, holding out a crumpled page that had escaped the almost-too-handsome young man. "I'm so sorry."

"That's alright, Ami-san. Nothing's spoilt. It's just that you startled me…" He nervously snatched the page from her hand, giving it a furtive glance before hiding it. Luckily it was nothing more than a hand-written list of additional research materials he was planning on using. He couldn't, of course, begin to tell her how horrified he'd been when he realized the small shadow that had fallen across his page had belonged to her. His guilty heart was still pounding double quick time.

"Research for your thesis?" she asked, trying to make some idle small talk for a moment while she screwed up her courage to ask what she'd come there for. Had she not been so distracted at the prospect of what she was going to do, she'd have noticed his distinct unease in her presence, a new development, at least on his part.

"Not exactly." He glanced down again quickly, making sure everything was under cover. "I don't…I mean… "

She placed a hand on his arm, gently cutting him off. "No need to explain. I shouldn't have asked. I don't like people seeing my work before it's done either."

Zarek heaved a sigh of relief, poking his slipping reading glasses back into place. It would have been impossible to explain what he was doing designing a device that would resonate on the same frequency as a senshi communicator and still maintain his anonymity. Ami would also have been justifiably angry. But luck had been with him. She hadn't seen. And he couldn't help but enjoy the soft pressure of her hand on his arm. Her skin was like warm, soft satin.

"I'm glad you're not offended, Ami-san. You're very understanding." He smiled.

Ami's pale face went petal pink as she looked into the face that was every bit as handsome as that vexing Shitennou's. Her breath caught somewhere in her lungs and she knew it was the moment of now or never. Without warning she blurted out in a breathless rush the words that had been pinging around her brain since she'd spotted him.

"WouldyouliketogooutwithmetonighttotheNationalMuseumandmaybedinnerlater?"

Zarek nearly dropped his papers a second time, staring speechless at her for what, to Ami at least, seemed to be the longest moment in recorded history. He simply couldn't believe Ami…shy, sweet, cautious Ami had actually taken the initiative and asked _him_ out instead of the other way around.

Ami writhed in chilly embarrassment as the moment stretched on and on. She ought to have known better than to take his earlier flirting seriously and ask him for a date. He was so handsome he probably had lots of women prettier than she who were interested in him.

"Or maybe not," Ami squeaked, suddenly realizing she was still holding him.

She was about to beat a humiliated retreat when the habitually flirtatious lab tech recovered from his surprise, caught her hand and held it in place, smiling a smooth smile that she felt warm her clear down to her toes.

"I'd love to, Ami-san. Tell me more…"

As Minako might have said, the scent of dating must have been in the air that day.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto sucked thoughtfully on her sticky thumb, eyeing the number on tag of the key she'd been given by Neil, who was off talking to someone, and then glancing at the numbers on the interior hall doors of the third floor of Sachi-Sachi Hall. She'd spent the afternoon in her favorite class, pastries, making baklava so delicious and full of honey it practically buzzed. She'd greedily sampled far too much of it for the good of her diet, but it had been so good she could hardly resist. Zeus but she was weak sometimes!

As she laved the last of the syrupy residue from her finger, she noticed she'd reached the right door. Sweet!

Plunging the key into the lock, she let herself in, unaccountably eager to see her new residence.

Her first impressions were of lightness, brightness and airiness, and a sense of expansiveness. It wasn't that the room was actually all that large, but compared to her former ultra-cramped quarters it felt like a palace. Makoto grinned, slinging her toque onto the bureau beside a healthy green and leafy Kamekichi, who appeared none the worse for his transplantation to new digs.

Two plain paneled doors set into the far wall drew her attention, and Makoto opened the first one to investigate. It was the closet, a walk-in affair, filled with all her things, all carefully hung in place. With a grin she shrugged out of her chef's jacket and slipped a fluffy pistachio green sweater from a hanger, though she didn't bother putting it on yet. The room was warm enough that her tank top would do for the moment. She felt something tight in her chest loosen when, while struggling with the hanger, she spotted the black lacquered box in which she stored her mother's things resting safely on the shelf.

However it was what was behind Door Number Two that had her practically squealing for joy. The room possessed its own small but serviceable ensuite bath. After multiple terms sharing a communal bath down the hall, this was practically Nirvana to her.

A soft, girlish rapping on the door pulled her away from thoughts of a protracted soak in steaming jasmine water. Pulling herself together, Makoto went to answer.

"Yes?" she asked as she pulled open the door and came face to face…well, face to top of the head with two young women, each of whom held something behind their backs.

"Are you Stearne Makoto?" chirped one of the women brightly.

Now it was one thing to know one was married, but a whole different thing to hear it out of the mouths of others. "I'm Kino…er…Stear…er…" For a moment Makoto couldn't seem to get the words out. Flustered, she blushed. "Yes, I'm Makoto. And you are?"

The two women exchanged knowing glances before bursting out laughing. "Isn't it cute?" the second one squealed to the other. "She's not used to her married name yet. I told you. They really are newlyweds."

"Er…may I help you?" Makoto asked a bit desperately, wondering who these two might be.

"With our best wishes for a long and happy marriage…" The first woman thrust a wine bottle into her hands. It was, Makoto noted as she eyed the label, a vintage that would have made her instructors weep, and not in a good way. However before she could do more than process that thought, the other one spoke.

"…From the brides group of the second floor," chimed in the second, pulling out a small plate from behind her back and plunking it onto Makoto's other hand. A tiny, slightly lopsided cake, just big enough for two and decorated with candied cherries stared back at her as Makoto stared down at it. "For you and your hubby."

"Eh?" she finally managed.

The two women grinned and the first one spoke again. "It's a tradition in this married student housing building. We always welcome the new brides on our floor with a cake and some champagne. There are so few of us, after all, that it's kind of like our own little club. Just consider this our friendly way of saying hello."

She bowed and introduced herself. "I'm Shinomara Emi, and I'm studying to be a kindergarten teacher. And this," she said as the second woman bowed, "is my friend, Sato Mariko."

"Studying to be a nurse," added Mariko, bobbing a quick bow and smiling winningly. "Wow I love your ring."

"Thank you." Makoto grinned. Bad taste in wine notwithstanding, it was hard not to like these two. They were so very earnest and friendly she liked them on sight. "I'm pleased to meet you both. I'm in Culinary Arts," she informed them, using the champagne bottle to gesture toward her tell-tale toque, which sat atop the bureau looking like an over puffed marshmallow, then set the bottle on the nearest flat surface along with the cake.

"Oh," said Mariko with an apologetic grin. "Now I'm embarrassed. My little cake must look pathetic to you, a professional."

"Not at all," assured Makoto with a wink, a smile, and a clap of her hands. "Cherries are my favorites. And I'm no pro yet. Otherwise I wouldn't be in school. So, you mentioned that this was tradition. Does this mean I'm supposed to bake the nex…"

"You're going to be baking, angel? Wonderful." The inquiry cut off what Makoto was about to say next as Neil arrived, looking so hopeful that Mariko and Emi began to giggle.

"And who are these two ladies?" he asked Makoto when neither woman volunteered to introduce themselves. They were staring up at him wide-eyed. He towered over them.

"Ah…Neil, these are some of our neighbors on this floor." Makoto quickly made the formal introductions. "They thoughtfully brought us a gift of cake and sparkling wine."

"That's very kind of you both," he told them, giving both women a charming grin which made Makoto, quite unaccountably, feel a faint twinge of jealousy. However before it could spoil the moment, he turned back to Makoto, sliding his arm around her waist.

"It must be in the air, beautiful. Because I brought you a little gift too." He plucked a small, plain box out of his pocket and caught her hand, kissing it first, then depositing the box in her palm. "It's not flowers…exactly, but I hope you like it anyway, darling."

Makoto felt herself flush as their audience sighed their approval at his gallant gesture. However she couldn't not open the box, especially since neither Emi nor Mariko seemed inclined to move, waiting eagerly to see what the present might be. Plus, she was female. She couldn't help but be flattered when a handsome man called her beautiful and brought her presents.

Resigned, Makoto opened it, wondering if it might be perfume, since the box seemed a little heavy for jewelry. However when she plucked out the little glass vial within it was definitely not perfume that she saw, though it was every bit as precious. She let out a soft gasp.

The little, somewhat industrial looking, screw-top jar appeared to be filled with a tangle of small pieces of red, nearly maroon colored string. A gorgeous Arabic script label covered the front of the bottle.

There was a blink, then two.

Suddenly Emi, who'd been staring at the container with a plainly puzzled expression burst out with a squeal of delight. "I know what it is! That's to symbolize the precious red thread that connects them together." She squealed, "He's a romantic!"

"Ooooh," Mariko said, nodding her head vigorously. "You're absolutely right, Emi-chan. Awwww…that's so sweet."

Their curiosity assuaged, the two bade the couple farewell and darted off down the hall to spread the gossip about the gooey sweetness that was their new dorm-mates. Neil grinned and herded his spouse back into their room, shutting the door behind them. Makoto, however, remained looking at the little bottle in shock. For she knew what Emi and Mariko did not.

The humble bottle contained a not insignificant quantity of precious, ultra fine grade saffron, the single most expensive spice on earth.

"My gosh, wherever did you get it?" she muttered, clutching it close. "That must have cost you an absolute fortune. Thank you!"

"Nothing but the best for you, angel." He chuckled and gave her lips a quick buss that made her tingle all over. "Like I said, not _exactly_ flowers…but the best part of that one anyway. Though I like your friends' interpretation too. It's creative."

He kissed her again, more deeply this time, leisurely exploring the contours of her mouth until with her fully reciprocating until they were both breathing roughly and a delicious warm languor had them leaning into one another for support. Her softness cradled his hard muscles as though they'd been made for one another.

"Mmmm…you taste like honey," Neil mused, gazing deeply into her jeweled eyes. "I like it."

The guilty expression that crossed Makoto's face was partly hidden from Neil's view as she slipped from his arms to put her precious saffron down so she wouldn't drop and spill it…and so that she wouldn't do throw caution to the winds and do something rash like throw herself at her husband, pin him against the nearest wall and lap him up like sweet cream. She shivered deliciously at the thought, however.

"I was making pastries with honey today. I'm afraid I got a little sticky." The explanation made her writhe with embarrassment. He must think her either a slobby child or a pig.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

The twin mental images of his sweet Mako and syrupy, sticky honey was almost too much for him, especially when the pale pink tank top she wore showcased just for him a gorgeous view of her alabaster cleavage. Neil's groin tightened painfully as he murmured, "And there's just time enough for us to have a shower before supper..."

Turning back, she took the cake from him and put it away for them to eat later. 'In bed,' her evil id tempted. She groaned softly as the thought conjured up more intimate images. Memories perhaps? Or were they wishful thinking?

Her thoughts were scattered, disorganized. What was happening to her all of a sudden? The soul of a wanton had surfaced in the body of a virgin. Her mind had to be playing tricks on her. He couldn't have said what she'd thought she'd heard.

"What was that?" she asked, her tone unintentionally sharp as she patted her flushed cheek and damned herself for her lack of control.

Patience, Neil heard his father's voice reminding him, was a virtue. He could also hear a voice that sounded suspiciously like Endymion's reminding him that she needed time and understanding. He couldn't rush her…couldn't force her into accepting their bond. They were taking baby steps together.

"I said, there's just time enough for you to take a shower before our supper with my professor," he transposed neatly.

"Mr. Clear Blue Sky, right?" Makoto forced a laugh, hanging up her sweater and swapping it out for an oversized terry bathrobe from the closet. "That sounds like a good idea. I won't be long." She fled into the bath, locked in the door, and turned on the hot water, wondering if she ought to be making it a cold shower instead.

"Wait for me," she called through the door, over the sound of the pounding spray.

"Forever, angel." His frustrated imagination running riot, he could almost hear the soft poof of clothing hitting the bathroom tile. Neil groaned as he watched steam curl under the door, beyond which his wife was tantalizingly nude and slippery wet.

She didn't hear the rest. "Just don't make it too long. I'm only human."

(Author's Notes to dear, patient, understanding readers: I am so sorry that this update took so very long. Honestly, many things have happened to cause it, not the least of which is that my puppy ATE my 'S' key off my laptop…no, I'm absolutely not kidding. Do you know how hard it is to write without an 'S'? Why not the Z…oh wait. That would hurt Zoi and Ami. Augh! No good. And expensive to fix. In any case, I'm not giving up on this story, and I'll try to keep the updates more frequent. Hope you enjoy it!)


	22. Détente, Danger and Dating Games

Chapter 22 – Détente, Danger and Dating Games

From his position, seated cross-legged before the fire like a fat little Buddha, the senior Hino watched with wise eyes, following Jed's path as he restlessly paced the matted floor. He took a quick bracing sip of warmed sake, mentally counting down.

'Three…two…one…blast off.'

"Why?!" the younger man burst out on cue. "Explain it to me! Please!"

"What can I tell you?" Rei's grandfather said with a resigned shrug, waving at a spot on the floor where Jed was to sit. They had retired to the old man's private meditation room for privacy. "Shigeo may be the son of my flesh and my Rei-chan's father and I will always love him and be grateful to him for giving her to me, but my son is not a man with whom I otherwise have anything in common anymore. He is a senator and I…I am a past he wishes no part of anymore."

He sighed and for the first time he looked every bit of his age. "He was not always as he is now. When he was younger he intended to succeed me as the priest to this temple. He married a girl, Risa, who was well suited to such a life. Her father, another priest, had recently passed on, leaving her alone in the world. She was kind and demure and gentle, content to let him make the decisions."

The old man's lips twisted in a wry parody of a grin. "My son has always had a talent for making decisions, knowing as he does that his decisions are always right. In any case, I believe they were, at that time, very much in love."

The idea of the ice-cold man he'd seen being in love with anyone was hard to believe, but Jed bit his tongue. "Please go on."

"The problems started when they wished to begin a family. Shigeo was certain that his wife would bear him the son he wished to have and Risa did became pregnant quickly. Sadly, though, she lost the child. All the doctors explained that this was surely just a fluke and that they could try again, of course, and they did. But to no avail. Poor Risa miscarried several times in a row, each time taking its toll on her health, though she remained hopeful. I believe it was then that my son, to avoid dealing with the pain and loss, ran for and won his first civic post. He threw himself into his work and advanced rapidly. He was ambitious and hungry. Eventually he gave up all thoughts of taking over the Hikawa shrine and decided to go into politics full time."

"But Rei…" prodded Jed, wondering where this was going.

"Patience," chided the old man. "I'm getting there."

When Jed fell silent, he continued. "Shigeo was advancing politically. However, as you may have seen in your own country, it is difficult to attain truly high office without appearing to have a stable family unit. My son now truly needed a child, preferably a son, to appeal to his conservative voting public and complete the picture of a perfect family man. So, although the doctors advised against it, he and Risa decided to try once again. The pregnancy was a tremendous ordeal for Risa, who was never overly strong, and she was bedridden much of the time, but there was much anticipation as her due date drew near for none of the other pregnancies had ever come so far. And in the spring when the cherry blossomed, Rei was born, healthy and strong, red-faced and screaming her lungs out. Risa was elated. Shigeo, however, was not."

Jed stared at Grandpa Hino. "For heaven's sake, why not?"

The priest clasped his fingers together, looking sorrowful. "Because Risa nearly died bringing her daughter into the world, and to save her life the doctors had to perform an operation that ensured she could never have any more children. So while my son now had a child, it was only a girl and not the son he was convinced he should have had. Dear little Rei-chan was a disappointment to her father from the moment he learned her sex."

A look of pure disgust crossed Jed's face. "That's sexist hogwash! He ought to have been grateful to have had any healthy child at all."

"I agree, but alas…" –The diminutive priest shrugged wearily– "…some traditions die very hard. In any case, although my son may have been disappointed, Rei did not lack for love for her mother and I adored her. And my son played the part of the doting father, in public, at least. However, in private he had, by then, withdrawn from everyone who loved him, becoming like ice almost, or a stone statue."

"And when Rei-chan was just four…" A long drawn out sigh echoed up from the depths of the little man's chest.

"Yes..." Jed urged him on.

"When Rei was four, her mother became ill. Very ill. This was during my son's first major push for public office and Shigeo, though he saw to it that Risa had the best of care, was rarely present."

"Even when she was hospitalized, wasted and dying, he could scarcely spare the time to be with her. Perhaps staying busy and away helped him numb the pain. I really don't know. What I do know is that when Risa called for him, Rei-chan, young as she was, went to her father and cried, begging him to come and be with her mother. You don't know how it cost her to leave her fragile mother's side even for that short time. It was the only time Rei left her at the hospice. Even the nurses and doctors couldn't make her leave, because even then Rei's will was too strong."

For the first time, Jed began to perceive where this was going and he didn't like it. "He didn't come." It wasn't a question.

Grandpa Hino shook his bald, round head. "No. My son did come…but he was too late. I believe he was at a political rally that night and Risa, though she struggled to hang on…lasting far longer than her doctors ever expected she would, died before he arrived. Rei-chan had to watch her mother die without her husband, his name the last word on her lips."

"My son was able to play the grieving widow with a motherless daughter card to the hilt and was elected in a sympathetic landslide, but I believe any spark of filial affection my granddaughter may have had for her father was extinguished then and there. Rei never quite forgave him for abandoning them for political reasons. They have been estranged ever since."

The oath Jed uttered just then was short, coarse, and spoken in a language of Terra that had died out more than a thousand years before. Rei's grandfather cocked an eyebrow upward. "I don't know what you said, boy, but somehow I think that about covers it."

"Sorry," said an embarrassed Jed. "So your son was swept into office and…"

"Rei became what would be best described as a…difficult child. Shigeo hired nannies, au pars and housekeepers, but Rei actively fought each and every person her father hired to care for her. He could not do so, obviously, because he was so busy with his high office."

Jed grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared balefully into the heart of the fire. "I'll just bet he was."

"Do you want to hear the rest or not?" rebuked the old man sharply.

"Probably not," replied Jed, through gritted teeth. "I know it'll just make me mad. But I need to, so please finish it."

"Very well. Needless to say, my son was appalled at the amount of staff he was going through and knew that sooner or later the press would catch wind of the situation, which would reflect badly on him and cause him to lose face. At a loss with how to deal with this wildly hostile child, Shigeo finally brought her to me. It played very well in certain circles, the story that his dear daughter was being raised up to be a proper, old-fashioned, docile Japanese lady, though it wasn't true, of course."

Rei's grandfather chuckled as the mental picture came to him of his little granddaughter, her hair disheveled, her picture-perfect kimono dirty and torn, her parasol and fan broken beyond repair, grinning triumphantly from ear to ear and over her shoulder the baseball bat that she'd stolen from a nasty boy who'd been teasing her. She hadn't been much of a lady, perhaps, but she'd always been one heck of a firecracker, and he loved her for it.

"Still, I, of course, was happy to take Rei in. And she was happy to come. I regret, though, that I was unable to do more for her. Her father would swoop in every so often when he needed her for a pretty photo op and force her to comply with his wishes by threatening to remove her from my custody altogether if she refused. He knew it was the one threat that would always work on Rei. My son is not above using emotional blackmail, I'm afraid. He still does, on occasion."

He waited a breath for his words to sink in. "So now you know."

A sick look marred Jed's face. "I wish I didn't."

The old man gave the younger a not unsympathetic glance, then twisted the knife. "I gave you answers. Now you give me some, boy." He watched as Jed shifted uneasily, preparing himself for the hard questions.

"Alright," was the cautious response. "What do you need to know?"

"What about Kaidou?"

"Who?" Jed looked puzzled, then he realized and blinked, looking confused. "You mean my look-alike in the bad undertaker's suit? What about him?"

"I know who Kaidou is to my son and to Rei. But who is he to you?"

"Why in the hell are you asking me?" Jed burst out, exasperated, "He's your son's flunky, I guess. I don't know."

The priest's eyebrows snapped together over his nose. "Is he your older cousin? A half-sibling perhaps?"

"No relation at all." Jed huffed. "I never saw him before in my life before today. And he's not related to me. The start of the term was the first time I'd set foot in this part of the world in the last thousand yea…"

He broke off on a sudden cough as Rei's grandfather sat bolt upright, looking intensely interested.

Jed hastened to fix his mistake, fixing his best innocent expression in place, though the back of his neck and his ears burned red. "I mean, my people may have been from here generations ago, but not for years and years and years."

Now the elderly Hino was not fooled one whit by the lie, but he let it go, tapping his index fingers together as he filed away the tidbit of information. "Interesting. Very interesting how fate works. So it is just coincidence then, that the man who loves my granddaughter and the one she now hates, who was her first love, share a face. Fascinating."

"What?!" burst out Jed as the words, 'First Love' thundered in his ears. The man, Kaidou, had to have been a grown man when Rei was little more than a girl. He tried to ignore the jealous flame that shot through him, concentrating on feeling disgusted instead of betrayed. Of course, if that man with his face had taken advantage of his Firebird in any way, he, Jed, was going to have to turn him into a eunuch. "Rei-chan and…him?"

Grandpa Hino smiled in grim satisfaction and picked up a poker, jabbing at the fire and scattering glowing blue-white coals. The trout had set up the bait on his own and still swallowed it in one gulp. Now to reel him in.

* * *

Toward the end of the dinner portion of their date, which Zarek and she had decided to do prior to heading to the museum, Ami had come to the conclusion that she was, surprisingly, really enjoying herself.

The surprise wasn't because she'd not liked him, because, of course, she did, but when Ami had first conceived of her plan she had mentally placed the date more in the category of an inoculation: a necessary but slightly unpleasant sort of vaccine to produce immunity against a specific disease, in this case, the effect that one particular Shitennou produced in her. And from the moment that the handsome lab tech had accepted her invitation, she'd struggled with the guilty knowledge that she was using him for her own ends…because it was the truth, as far as it went. Her own dirty little secret.

Yet somehow the situation had changed. Yes, Ami realized with a twinge of regret, she was still using Zarek, but she no longer saw the date as something to be endured solely for the proper outcome, but as something she was really relishing. It was a revelation.

Ami had never dated extensively, and those few she had gone out on had tended to be a bit uncomfortable, a condition for which Ami had wholly blamed herself and her shyness. After all, her experiences with men, aside from Mamoru (who was safe because he was already taken), were very limited. She tended to get tongue-tied and red-faced in such situations. She also hadn't gotten many second dates because of it.

However, in this case there was none of the dreadful awkwardness that she'd experienced in the past. Perhaps, she thought, it was because they'd worked together. Veridian Zarek was charming and bright and witty, which she'd already known, but he was also possessed of surprisingly deep insights about the world at large.

They'd chatted animatedly throughout the meal, discussing everything from their favorites in music and art (he'd even once seen some of her father's work!), to the advancing state of medical technology, to the incident when Zarek's older cousin Zenaida had, when he was just a toddler, dressed him up in a frilly gown and bonnet and paraded him down the boulevard he'd lived on, calling him by her favorite doll, Zinnia's, name. The fact that he'd related the last unselfconsciously impressed the ever-shy Ami more than she could admit.

In fact, all in all, Ami was thoroughly enjoying herself with him.

And best of all, since she'd picked Zarek up, she hadn't thought more than once or twice about the vexing, green-eyed king who plagued her.

The phantom image of those piercing, cat-like orbs danced through Ami's brain and she unconsciously frowned.

Oh drat…she was thinking about Zoisite again! Darn it all!

Zarek had thought it was all going very well for a first date. Ami had been laughing and even reaching out and touching his hand and arm, though he doubted she was aware of it. He certainly was, though, and enjoying every minute of her soft touch. But as he watched, quite abruptly his date had fallen silent. He realized at once she was lost in thought. He'd seen the signs before and could only wonder what it was she was pondering so intently all of a sudden.

Her deep midnight eyes were unfocused and vague, like they had been the first time he'd seen her in the library of Mariner Castle on Mercury, lost in a book. Chopsticks were still clutched in her hand, forgotten and hanging in space. Her forehead had creased as she lapsed into deep concentration, and her rosebud lips were puckered into a gentle scowl that made him want nothing more than to drop a light kiss on them.

"Ami…" Instead of the kiss, Zarek was forced to settle for giving his date a gentle nudge to bring her back to Planet Earth. "Yen for your thoughts?"

"Eh?" She started, blinking and dropping her chopsticks with a clink, then smiled shyly.

"They're hardly worth that much, I'm afraid," Ami admitted.

She realized, to her embarrassment, that he had finished the last of his meal while she'd been wool-gathering, and even sent the waitress off with the check. What kind of clod must he think her to have neglected him so? Especially since she'd invited him instead of the other way around.

She stammered around for a moment, trying to find something properly apologetic to say, but finally had to settle for, "Are you ready to go?"

The embarrassed flush of pink that had suffused her pale cheeks and warmed the tip of her nose made her look adorable, Zarek decided. Also, imminently kissable.

Although he was enjoying himself and in no hurry for their date to end, that thought made him smile with anticipation of at least one aspect of the date's finale. She'd always had tasted as sweet as she looked. He was quite sure she still would.

With an encouraging nod, he rose and held out his hand for her and, arm in arm they left, though they hadn't far to go. They'd deliberately chosen the restaurant nearest Ueno Park and the museum for its convenience. Ami fought the urge to run ahead when they got there. She loved the museum, part science museum, part natural history, always interesting. It was so peaceful and there was invariably something new to see. She hoped Zarek would enjoy it like she did.

Zarek frowned as they entered the building. Though they hadn't noticed it as they'd ascended the stairs outside, once inside the place was something of a mob scene, a fact that was brought to his attention as Ami was jostled and nearly knocked over by a rude man with a large video camera who was pushing past her, headed in the direction of a huge crowd which was filling the main hall of the museum.

"Watch it, lady," snapped the man, shoving by.

Zarek caught her arm to steady her and sliced a vicious glare at the pushy jerk. The newsman, intent on his goal, never noticed.

"Are you okay, Ami-chan?"

"Fine," she murmured. "It certainly is packed, though."

"Huh. I wonder why." Zarek voiced the thought aloud, thinking Ami had a certain rare gift for understatement. It was a madhouse.

Ami pursed her lips as she studied one of the explanatory banners that swagged from the ceiling to just above an eye-less, bony skull the size of a barcalounger and back again.

"Oh heck," she fussed. "I've been so busy at school that I completely forgot they were opening a big new dinosaur expo here. I read in the paper, though, that they were even bringing Sue, the T-Rex's, bones here from America and that it was going to be extensively covered by the media. And, unfortunately, it looks like today's the day."

She looked crestfallen as she apologized. "I'm so sorry, Zarek-san. It's bad timing on my part." She gave a wistful glance at doors, feeling as if her private sanctuary had been invaded and overrun by camera-toting troglodytes. "If you want to go elsewhere, we can."

He glanced over at the milling crowd, then through the nearest adjacent set of doors to the sprawling area beyond. By contrast to the central hall, that wing was practically empty. Probably so were the others that surrounded the main gallery. And, he realized after a quick glance at the museum map, fortuitously they all connected, one to the next to the next. They could avoid the crowds and peruse the other exhibits for hours, in near total privacy.

The thought made him grin roguishly. He'd have plenty of chances to be alone with his little blue-haired bluestocking, even with the chaos and dino madness going on outside. He had no idea what exhibits were featured in any of the other halls, but the idea of Ami and he alone, away from prying eyes was his idea of a perfect date, no matter what they would see.

"Nonsense," he said with a winning grin, taking her arm again and squaring his shoulders. "I've always wanted to learn about the…" Zarek paused and glanced at the sign next to the door. The exhibit sounded incredibly dull to him. "…life cycle of the pearl oyster."

The grateful and approving grin Ami flashed him, however, made it all worth while.

Zarek and Ami's wasn't the only date starting off well that night.

Makoto's first public outing as a married woman was going rather nicely also. Although she'd fretted from the time they'd left their room until they gotten to Demeter's Garden (partly about how his professor would take the knowledge of their 'elopement' and partly about the suitability of wearing pumps with the one good dress she'd been able to find. Neil had assured her over and over that they were fine on both scores.), once they'd arrived, she'd been on Cloud Nine.

The restaurant was everything she'd imagined in her most romantic daydreams, both elegant and refined, yet somehow welcoming at the same time. Soft strains of classical music floated through the air while flickering candles created a warm, cozy ambiance. The aroma of rich French delicacies and fresh flowers perfumed the air, making Makoto's nose twitch in appreciation. Neil's quick eyes had noticed and he grinned broadly at seeing her so pleased.

Both Makoto and Neil had been a bit shocked when, as they were arriving, they spotted a very peeved-looking Rei leaving on the arm of a flirtatious young man in a conservative suit. The man wrapped a too-eager arm around the brunette, who stiffened and stepped away to get her coat. Following behind them, as if chaperoning (though he was doing a poor job of it), was a blond man whose face was set in an impassive mask.

Neil did a disapproving double take when he realized that the man was not Jed. Makoto though, who had met Kaidou before and recognized him, was coolly polite to both men as they exchanged pleasantries, but her eyes communicated total sympathy to Rei, for Makoto recognized the stench of Senator Hino's handiwork all over his daughter's 'dinner date'. She did not care for the smell.

That, however, had been the only real bump in the road.

To Makoto's surprise and delight, she'd enjoyed meeting Neil's professor and his wife. Not at all stuffy as she'd feared, they put her immediately at ease. They were generous and unexpectedly friendly, and the wife and Makoto shared a mutual passion for traditional Japanese home cooking that had made conversation over their meal easy and congenial.

There had been one potentially awkward moment at first when, upon introduction the rotund little man had looked up to meet his student's Amazonian bride…and had to keep looking up and up, since she towered over him in her heels. But then an impish grin had crossed his face and he'd murmured appreciatively to Neil, "Ah, she suits you." He then kissed Makoto's hand with continental flair. "My dear, if only I were twenty years younger…"

"You'd have to be a half a head taller too," said his petite little wife elbowing him in the ribs and laughing lightly. "Pay him no mind whatsoever, my dears. He's an incorrigible flirt."

She then welcomed Makoto and Neil with what Makoto thought was incredible graciousness, complimenting Makoto effusively on her cocktail dress, a fluttery thing of delicately beaded, palest gold organza, against which Makoto's auburn curls glowed like an autumn sunset.

The gown had been a gift from Setsuna several years back and Makoto, having never had occasion to wear it, had forgotten about it until she had, in desperation rooted through the closet for something, anything to wear. The professor's wife apparently had something of a fashionista's eye and had recognized its design as a trademark of the 'House of Meiou' and been duly impressed. As they all walked to their table, Neil had whispered in Makoto's ear that it closely resembled the gown she'd worn on their wedding day. And that she looked just as beautiful now. The appreciative, almost reverent tone in his voice as he'd said it made her stomach feel as fluttery as the organza that danced at her hem.

Throughout the meal, of which Makoto savored every bite, the older couple, who had been married for many years, peppered Neil and Makoto with questions about their lives and relationship. Makoto and Neil had answered as best they could, fudging where needed on the answers. The older couple had been most sympathetic when they'd heard about Makoto's parents, but also managed to lighten the mood by imparting humorous marital advice, which they stated that her parents would have enlightened the couple with if they could have.

Some of the suggestions relating to Neil's passion for astronomy were true gems, including one to Neil from his professor's wife, who phrased it more in the order of a commandment.

"Thou shalt not deceive thy spouse into thinking that ye are taking them for a romantic Saturday night drive when indeed thou art heading for a dark sky site. No, never." The way she grinned when she said it and her husband's abashed look proved that he had been guilty of the sin.

As Neil laughed out loud, Makoto cocked her head to one side, puzzled. 'Dark sky site? Why a dark sky….?' Then she realized. 'Ooooh. Right.' Dark skies equaled better star gazing which, apparently, equaled not romantic. She thought back to Valentine's Night when she and Neil had watched the stars together from Rei's temple and came to the conclusion that was probably not a mortal sin. Though she'd never had an interest before, with Neil it had certainly been romantic enough in her book, at least until that wretched wraith had shown up.

However, that was the point at which Neil's professor broke in with, "No, the real commandment is that thou shalt not store thy telescope in thy bedroom, lest thou be sleeping with it full time."

When both Neil and Makoto turned red at that, the couple laughingly changed the subject. The professor's wife waved over the waiter and whispered an order to him before turning back to their meal. They only discovered what had happened.

After their table had been cleared, the waiter swooped in bearing a silver tray upon which rested a fluffy, lighter-than-air vanilla soufflé, its ramekin nestled inside a crisp white napkin folded like a swan, swimming through a sea of snowy rose blossoms. This he placed before Makoto, who gasped, grabbing Neil's hand. He in turn kissed her hand, his lips brushing over her wedding band.

"Every woman, no matter how small her wedding, deserves a wedding cake," the professor's wife said by way of explanation. "I do hope this will do."

The vision of epicurean artwork made tears come to Makoto's eyes. "It's beautiful," she gulped, her voice quavering. "It's perfect." And so, Makoto thought, was the evening as a whole.

Aino Minako, had she the chance, would have begged to differ with her friend. Of course she felt like she was being nibbled to death by a flock of mongeese…gooses…or was it duckbilled platypuses? She wasn't sure. But at least in her case it was a single nagging puss.

"Yes, _Venusian_ Soul Bonding. That's what she said he said. No, of course I don't know what it means. How am I supposed to know? Hrmph…well, your memory wouldn't take any prizes either, fuzz face. That's why I told you to dig into it with Luna. Maybe together you can fill in the holes in each other's memories."

Minako, her hair up in a messy top knot secured with two pencils, sat cross-legged in the middle of her wildly disarrayed bed (wallowing her mother would have called it), alternately sucking thoughtfully on her ice-cream spoon and crossly answering the endless questions put to her via phone from her overly-chatty guardian, who'd apparently been storing them up all day until he could get a hold of her.

All the while she clutched a ratty looking sock monkey in the crook of one arm as she attempted, for once, to get off the line quickly so that she could get back to trying to sense of the few notes she had taken in class and the others she'd managed to get by a combination of borrowing (from the males, who were happy to grant them for nothing more than a half-smile and some batted eyelashes), and begging and pleading (with her female classmates only).

After all, if she didn't buckle up and study at least a little bit of the time, she'd flunk out of college and there was no way she would allow that to happen now that HE was around to twit her about it. So, despite the fact that she felt most academics were a pure waste of time, she studied. Or, rather, she would have if she could ever get Artemis to leave her alone.

"Stupid cop probably got straight As in cop school," she mumbled grumpily to her monkey, shoveling in a spoonful of frozen chocolate solace. "And I'm sure he never cut class."

"What was that?" hissed her guardian feline suspiciously. "Who are you talking about? Is there someone there?"

"Nothing. Nobody. And no way. In that order." Minako sighed gustily, staring at the crisp, jet black service cap dangling wickedly from her roommate's bedpost. Nobody was there, that was, except for the specter of Kazuhiko Kane, who, even in his physical absence was firmly present in her thoughts. Damn cop. "Look, I've gotta go. No. I'm not going out. I'm studying because I've got a test tomorrow."

The fact that, after paying to fix Motoki's hair, she would have no money to spare for going out also probably had a little to do with her unusual studiousness that night, she reflected. And _that_ was all Kane's fault too, Minako thought uncharitably. She'd be stuck in for a month, paying off that tab. It would be his fault if she got good grades.

Minako's attention snapped back to her guardian when Artemis made a very rude, "Pshhht," sound and voiced his not unfounded doubts about her truthfulness. Minako, however, was understandably offended.

"No. Of course I'm not lying. Auuuugh! Just find out what you can and call me back, Artemis! I've got to STUDY!" Minako finally exploded when Artemis continued nattering at her. She knew that the latter would be the only reason to which the little feline might listen. Even so, he was still spitting out questions as Minako snapped her phone shut, cutting him off and, with a frustrated shriek, hurled the device into her overflowing laundry hamper where it promptly sank out of sight, drowning in a multi-colored sea of clothes.

Minako had just inhaled another jangled-nerve-soothing spoonful of ice cream when the telephone shrilled, though this time its sound was muffled. Minako let out a groan. It could only be Artemis. This time she was forced to rummage around through a tangle of sheets and clothes until she unearthed her hidden phone.

"Damned cat's as persistent as a plague of fleas and twice as annoying," she muttered, flicking aside the tank top and sheer socking which had wrapped themselves around the phone. She could only be grateful that her roommate, who wouldn't understand, was out.

"I told you I had to study, so stop calling me!" she commanded rudely, with the air of a high-maintenance diva to a particularly lowly associate.

"AINO MINAKO!" an all too familiar voice shrieked, making her flinch, all pretext of diva-dom fled in an instant.

Merciful Aphrodite, it was her mother!

"Is that any way to talk to your mother?! And how could you think you could hide something like this from us?! We're your parents. We deserve to know these things!"

Minako's heart rate sky-rocketed. She could actually hear the blood pounding in her ears. Okay. Somehow her parents had found out about her recent legal mishaps. She took a bracing breath and tried to keep her voice from squeaking. "We-ell, it was like this…"

"You get your backside home this minute, missy!" demanded her mother not waiting for an excuse or an apology. "You are expected in this living room in twenty minutes. Not one minute more."

"But mother…"

"Now!"

The buzz of the severed connection drilled through Minako's skull like the sound of a swarm of angry killer bees, and she clutched the sock monkey convulsively. Dear goddess! Her mother knew! Now she _was_ dead meat. All things considered, she'd have rather faced the bees.

Twenty five minutes later, silently practicing the words she'd prepared for her apology and mea culpa, Minako was inserting a key into the lock. She was, as always, late. Yet another thing for her mother to ride her about, although what she could have done about the bus delay today was beyond her ability to comprehend.

It wasn't her fault that the bus driver had been more interested in flirting with her than in driving…well, not exactly her fault anyway. At least, she thought as she twisted a lock of bright gold around one finger, it wasn't something she had control over these days. Being beautiful was a curse to bear sometimes.

She was completely unprepared for the apron-clad, hugging dervish that set upon her as she stepped foot into the foyer. Before she could blink she'd been hugged tightly, hugged tighter, stripped of her coat, and then bear-hugged again.

"Darling," squealed her mother in a tone that Minako devoutly hoped never to hear from her parent's lips again. "You've done it this time. You've hit the jackpot!" All-seeing eyes drifted down her daughter's form from head to toe, taking in the sight of the pencil-styled hair, ragged blue jeans and the cropped, chocolate smudged 'Sweet Thang' T-shirt that she knew to be part of Minako's pjs, not outdoor wear. Mrs. Aino smacked her forehead as her enthusiasm drained away like water from a cracked glass. "Oh lord!"

Bewildered, Minako rolled her eyes and pushed free, headed for the living room. If she was going to have to grovel, which she most likely was, she wasn't going to do it in the front hall as performance art for all of her parents' neighbors. "I haven't the mistiest idea what you're talking about moth…"

She froze in the doorway, nearly suffering instantaneous heart failure at what she saw there. "…er."

There, opposite her father, sat Kazuhiko Kane in her family's living room, definitely not in regulation uniform and looking almost indecently male in spite of being sprawled on her mother's über-feminine, beruffled chintz love seat. He was flipping idly through a book.

He glanced up and nodded, then rose politely, making Minako's mother, who had come in right on her daughter's heels, beam at the gentlemanly gesture.

To Minako's extreme horror she recognized the satin-covered album in his hands. It was her life in pictures: The book in which her mother had pasted all her photographs, from those with her in diapers and smeared with baby food, to those of her as a nearly bald toddler wearing a bow as big as her whole head, held on with a garter, and clutching a wispy feather boa. Further on there were a succession of gap-toothed, gangly limbed school photos, including one of her grinning ear to ear wherein she had managed to convince the photographer to let her wear a cowboy hat and flash a V for victory sign. And then there were the Sailor V movie publicity shots.

Minako cringed, fighting the urge to snatch away the photo album and burn it. And then fling herself on the flaming pyre afterward.

"Your little to do canceled, honey?" Kane asked quietly, though wicked laughter danced in his eyes. Minako seethed. She'd been neatly outplayed by a master. She never would have figured him for a rat, though, at least not unless it concerned his prince.

"Sit down, darling," gushed Minako's mother, dropping down into a chair, "and you too, Officer Kazuhiko, please.

"Please call me Kazuhiko-san," he requested. "I'm off duty."

"Of course, Kazuhiko-san." Mrs. Aino turned to her daughter. "Darling, your _friend_ dropped by to introduce himself to your family. So thoughtful, don't you think?"

Minako couldn't seem to formulate an answer. If Kane hadn't ratted her out to her parents, then what on Earth was he doing at her parents' home? And why had her mother demanded her presence anyhow?

Reaching out one hand, Kane caught Minako's arm and tugged her down to sit beside him where she couldn't help but notice the warmth of his body pressing close against hers on the short couch, the crisp scent of his aftershave, and the subtly sexy unbuttoned collar button of his shirt. When the warmth of his hand drifted down the skin of her back exposed by her midriff-baring shirt, Minako felt a sizzle go up her spine and then some part of her brain stem seized up.

She could only bite back the moan that rose in her throat and thus was completely unable to answer when her mother chirped, "So, tell us, how did you two meet and how long have you been seeing one another?"

"Oh, we first met through mutual friends. One of her closest friends is married to one of my oldest friends, you see. From the first, I found your daughter fascinating, Aino-san," Kane answered easily, managing to smile warmly at her mother, who beamed. "We've been seeing one another ever since."

Minako's jaw nearly fell on the floor. "Urk," she managed to gasp in wonderment at his audacity. No one noticed. Her mother was too busy beaming at Kane and her father was grumbling noisily behind his evening paper.

"I seem to recall a man with a family name of Kazuhiko who was in the Diet some years back. From one of the old samurai clans. Are you one of _those_ Kazuhiko's, Officer?" burbled her mother tactlessly. Minako winced. She'd been too well raised to call anyone a fame-whore, but there was no denying that her mother enjoyed basking in reflected glory, and it was just so embarrassing when others noticed. Her mother had social climbing aspirations and Kane had just handed her prime fantasy material.

He smiled blandly in response, not only not offended, but seemingly unaware of the reasons behind her mother's probing, though Minako was unconvinced. He couldn't be that oblivious. He was too sly for that.

"My father, Kazuhiko Masanori. He went in to politics after retiring from the family business. Before he passed, that is. Now, I'm afraid, I'm all that's left, save a few very extended family members."

"So you run your family's business AND work as a police officer? However do you have the time?"

"Capable finance managers. The company is well managed and my family's money properly invested. Thus, I've been freed to do what I always wanted to do. I believe protecting our society is a calling of the highest order," Kane announced, his voice ringing with conviction, shocking Minako, who hadn't known the normally stone-faced warrior could show such human emotion, even if it was, in her opinion at least, probably false.

Minako's mother nearly swooned. Handsome, wealthy, connected, and principled. Had she ordered him out of a catalogue, her daughter couldn't have done better.

Her normally mild-mannered father bristled slightly, however, and gave his paper a sharp flick, dropping one corner so that he could glower at Kane.

"I hope you won't take this the wrong way, Kazuhiko-san," he began, his gaze flickering suspiciously over the man's pale mane of hair, "but aren't you a little old for my daughter? You understand that no father wants someone playing around with his child. She deserves someone who's serious about her."

'Yes daddy! Thank you, daddy!' Minako unreservedly was mentally cheering on her father. 'Go all overbearing father-figure on him and throw the wolf-in-geezer's clothing out of the house! Tell him he can never see me again. Pleeeeease!!'

Suddenly sober as a judge, Kane leaned forward. "Aino-san, I understand and respect your concerns. They do you credit. Any right-thinking father would be protective of his little girl." Unexpectedly, he caught up an unsuspecting Minako's hand in his own and lifted it to his lips, making her squeak. "However, sir, you wrong me if you think my intentions are dishonorable or not serious. I believe that were you to ask those who know me, you would find that I am the most serious person they know."

He lightly touched his silvery-white hair with his free hand and shrugged. "Actually, despite what it may look like, I'm not that much older than your daughter. It's not age, sir. I'm afraid my hair has always been this color." His lips twisted ruefully as he asked, "Do I really look that old?"

"Not at all!" Minako's mother flew to his defense, shooting her husband a withering look that fairly dared him to voice further objections. "Your appearance is ageless, young man. And I'm quite sure our daughter is in excellent hands with you."

'Not yet, but soon.' Kane wisely kept the anticipatory thought to himself, running his thumb lightly over the back of Minako's hand. He could hear her soft intake of breath and smiled.

His one weak argument crumbling in the face of Kane's explanation and his wife's gimlet stare, Minako's father slumped back into his chair and muttered uncertainly, "Ah…well…then I guess that's alright."

'Weak as water!' Minako's shoulders drooped as she groaned and jerked away from Kane's hand, shaking her own as it seemed to tingle at from his touch. Something suspiciously like laughter seemed to dance in those glacial grey eyes of his, though his face remained impassive, a slab of granite.

Her hand was free only a second. "Honey," he said, drawing out the endearment and ignoring the glare she shot him, "I thought maybe, after getting to know your folks some, you'd like to go for that walk I mentioned earlier."

"Oh, that sounds nice," Mrs. Aino said. "So romantic, even if it is a bit cold out."

"It's also getting late." Again Minako's father bristled. "It is a school night for her," he pointed out.

"Don't worry sir," murmured Kane silkily. "I'll have her in bed by midnight at the latest."

Minako's mother sucked in her breath for a long moment, then let out a sound that was somewhere between a titter and being strangled as Minako's father's eyeballs bulged and a vein began to throb in his forehead. "What did you say?!" he demanded, dropping his paper.

Minako stifled the inappropriate urge to laugh out loud, wondering if her father was suddenly planning a shotgun wedding or just to commit mayhem. If Artemis had only heard that, Kane would have been a mass of bloody scratches.

The younger man did manage a creditable job of looking disconcerted at what had come out of his mouth. "I'm terribly sorry…I meant that I would get Minako back home at a decent hour, of course."

"Of course you meant it that way," wheezed Mrs. Aino, eyeing Kane very much as though she'd like to eat him up with whipped cream.

"You'd better have," growled Minako's father, grabbing up his paper which he opened with a resounding snap.

While neither of her parents was looking, Kane caught Minako's eye. Heat flared between them and in an instant she knew that the outrageous words had been fully intended. Every last one of them. Her face went as scarlet as her trademark bow.

In a desperate attempt to break the tension, Minako blurted out, "Uh…Mother…I think I'd like some coffee?"

With some difficulty, Mrs. Aino ripped her gaze away from Kane. "Really dear? I thought you hated it. But if you're sure, Minako darling, I can get that for you. How about you, Kazuhiko-san?"

"That would be lovely."

Dear? Darling? It was amazing, Minako thought with a mental snort of disgust, how she'd gone from pariah to princess just by bringing the man into her mother's orbit.

"No, mother. Let me." Anything to get away from his touch for a moment. Heck, she'd cook an eight course feast while she was at it. The more involved and time-consuming, the better.

In one quick motion, Minako bounced off the couch, taking the photo album with her, and fled into the kitchen, cringing as she heard her mother coo, "So tell me some more about yourself, Kazuhiko-san…"

Minako stayed in the kitchen as long as she could, though it took her far longer than it ought to have to make the coffee, for her trembling hands made a mess every time she tried to pick something up. She scattered the filters far and wide, and spilled the coffee grounds everywhere. She spattered the water on the counter. She dropped the cups, which, luckily for her, did not break (except for her favorite old mug, which had already been slightly chipped).

When, as the coffee finally began to bubble and perk in the machine, she attempted to pick up the broken pieces, she sliced her finger on one of the jagged shards. Sucking in a pained breath, she stood there staring at her fingertip as a single ruby droplet welled up on the pad of her finger. "Damn you, Kunzite."

Apparently just speaking of him conjured him up like an evil spirit, for in the next second he was there, looming over her. "There you are. You've hid in here long enou…"

He broke off, scowling darkly as he spotted the blood. "Are you okay?" Kane demanded, catching her small hand in his broad one. Without waiting for an answer, he plucked from nowhere, a twin handkerchief to the one he'd given her the previous night for her lip. Methodically he wrapped the wounded digit, neatly tying the linen off when he was satisfied. "There."

Minako gave her finger an experimental flex, but it didn't move much and it didn't hurt. He'd bound it well. There was only one thing left to do.

"This is for lying to my parents and upsetting my father, you jerk!"

Her palm cracked across one high-bladed cheekbone, turning his head. He hissed as blood flooded the newly bruised flesh, making for a vivid handprint there.

Challengingly, Minako held out her wrists at arms length, both hands cocked downward. "Going to cuff me now, officer?"

Silently, Kane fingered the hot spot on his cheek as he stared her down. Minako, however, refused to be cowed. She shook her wrists expectantly. Finally he grunted. "I suppose I deserved that."

He didn't even have the simple decency to look embarrassed, Minako thought angrily. She gave a proud toss of her head, retorting, "You certainly did." Her action lost some of the intended power of its impact, however, as one of the improvised hairsticks in her topknot came loose, allowing a sunny hank of blond silk to fall to her waist. She squealed, grabbing the pencil before it hit the floor.

Almost as if in a trance, as if his hand wasn't in control of his body, Kane reached out and plucked the other pencil free, allowing the rest of Minako's luxuriant mane to tumble down and form a glowing bell-like curtain around her.

She bared her teeth, growling a warning.

Just then her senshi communicator shrilled an alarm and mere seconds later, his cell phone chimed in, breaking the tension.

The two glanced down at their respective devices, grimaced, and picked them up to listen. When they hung up, both Kane and Minako shared a strangely unsettling look of communion.

Minako tossed aside the writing instrument in her hand. Pulling out a distinctive orange pen instead, she leapt into motion and, on her way out the door she bellowed, "Mother, sorry to leave before the coffee, but Kane and I've gotta dash!"

Out in the living room, Mrs. Aino hid a smile from her husband, who scowled fiercely when his wife called back, "Have fun, and don't do anything I wouldn't do, darling."

A particularly vicious slam of the back door was her daughter's only reply.

* * *

Pearl oysters had turned out to be a lot more fascinating than Zarek had ever imagined.

Ami, Zarek knew, was the reason for it. It was hard not to learn when he couldn't tear his gaze away from her lips as she read aloud to him the placards that explained the items exhibited. The lilt of her voice was musical to his ears. And her unbridled enthusiasm for acquiring knowledge also made everything she was interested in more interesting to him, though he doubted she fully realized the effect she had on him.

He trailed along in her wake, grinning roguishly as she bent over displays cases, taking her time with each one. She didn't have the first clue either, he realized, just how enticingly her slim-fitting orchid-colored skirt tended to ride up when she bent over the displays, revealing the sensitive, pearl pale skin behind her knees and further up.

He thrust both hands firmly into his pockets, ruining their fine pleats, but ensuring that he wouldn't do something that would shock Ami out of her mind and ruin their date. Glancing back at him to make sure he was with her, Ami realized for the first time that Zarek's glance was fixed on her legs, not the bubbling aquarium tanks filled with live Chinese freshwater mussels and _Pinctada maxima_ oysters.

She flushed and tugged at her hem. Zarek, caught, gave her a sheepish grin. He did not, however, proffer an apology, and Ami didn't ask for one. Her senshi sisters would have recognized it for the telling detail it was.

"I believe these would suit you," opined Zarek, searching for a tension breaker, tugging her toward a case chock full of the oysters' end product. Before them was a magnificent, gleaming display of some truly spectacular pieces of pearl jewelry from all around the world.

Ami let out a soft gasp.

Moonlit ropes of the lustrous ocean gemstones from Ceylon, some longer than Ami was tall, were draped across the display case shelves in dramatic Baroque splendor. Local 'Akoya whites', perfectly matched and set in platinum, shone on black velvet pillows. There were heavy bracelets and hair combs displayed, set lavishly with rare, South Seas golden pearls and other glittering jewels. Orbs of black and chocolate pearls gleamed with darkly iridescent grandeur in glittering diamond ring settings. Fat teardrops of perfect peach and lilac alternated with rose gold pendants to form a splendid collar, fit for any queen.

His eye happened to fall on a stunning piece that was a perfect confection of creamy pearls interspersed with rich sapphires and clear, bright aquamarines arranged in a whirlpool swirl. "That one, particularly," he said, pointing at the broach dubbed 'The Nixie's Eye'.

"Oh no," Ami hastily denied, shaking her head. "It's far too grand."

Zarek's gaze locked with hers. "And so are you," he told her huskily, brushing back a tumbled azure lock of her hair. His knuckles brushed gently across her cheekbone.

The display had sparked a memory. A very long time before…a lifetime before, the European king had once commissioned a custom-designed kokoshnik, or Russian-style tiara, petite in size and set with exquisite peacock pearl 'lace', perfectly suited to play up Ami's delicate beauty. Ignoring old-wives tale warnings that 'pearls meant tears', it had been intended as a betrothal gift, but he'd never gotten the chance to ask for her hand or give it to her. Zarek couldn't help idly wondering where it was now.

Under his rapt gaze, the soft rosy color of a pink pearl bloomed in Ami's cheeks. All thoughts of a particular Shitennou had gone, and the rest of the world fell away as she focused in solely on her date. "Thank you," she said very seriously.

"Don't thank me yet." He smiled wolfishly, lowering his head to bring his lips to hers. His arms wrapped around her slender waist. Ami strained upward on her tip toes. Zarek nibbled lightly on her full lower lip before taking full possession of her mouth.

She ought to resist, she knew. Such behavior was very inappropriate. But the part of her that yearned for knowledge would not be denied. Suddenly she had to know what flavor of kiss Zarek had, and wouldn't rest until she did. So in spite of the public place, for once Ami let herself go, brazenly throwing herself into the kiss, which was, in her opinion, perfection…until, with a colossal bang, the whole building shook.

Startled, Ami let out a yelp and stumbled backward, sitting down hard. Her limbs sprawled every which way and she couldn't help but wonder if there'd been an earthquake…a major one.

Zarek clenched his fists and bit back his foremost urge, to growl and curse fate for ruining their first kiss this time around. It wasn't fair, dammit! The urge, though, faded away rapidly as the room shuddered again and again and he heard the sound of terrified screams echoing from the main hall.

Ami struggled to tug her skirt down to some semi-modest length and still stand up, waving away his hand. She'd just gotten her feet back under her when the room again shuddered and pitched, more strongly this time. 'Aftershocks!' she deduced, as she toppled forward and landed on her knees, banging her skull hard against the nearest oyster tank.

A fine but growing crack appeared in the glass, allowing water to seep out and begin to pool on the floor. Having been only momentarily stunned, Ami palpated her head experimentally, assessing her symptoms as her mother would have. There was a growing bump and she felt slightly woozy, but there was no cut and no blood. It was a good sign at least.

"Stay down and wait here," Zarek warned Ami, running unsteadily from the pearl room to scout out the source of the chaos. The ground continued to heave and rumble beneath his feet. He never heard her soft-spoken, "Wait. We need to get under cover."

In spite of her dizziness, she scoffed, almost hearing Rei's scornful voice ringing in her ears. 'Stay down and wait? Not likely.' Ami dragged herself behind a display case, giving herself a second for the rushing sound in her ears to cease before she attempted to haul herself up. Now she could hear the screaming and past experience made her sure. Whatever it was, it wasn't an earthquake that was going on.

Zarek had just figured that out the hard way. "Blood Hel!"

The Old Norse oath that burst from the European king's lips was not unwarranted. In his wildest dreams he'd never have imagined the sight that met his eyes and halted him in his tracks. In a scene straight out of hell, or a Jurassic Park movie, rampaging thunder lizards, the terrors of primordial world, roamed again. Only this time the creatures who were like as not to end up crushed underfoot or crushed between fearsome jaws were not primitive mammals the size of cats, but a larger though only slightly more advanced species, Homo Sapiens Newsreporticus, and their screaming camera persons too. The crowd surged toward the emergency exits as it became a case of every man for himself. Then the horror-stricken cries went up as all the doors in the place began, on their own and with nary a visible hand to guide them, to slam and seal shut.

"The doors are locked! There's no way out! We're trapped!!"

Feeling a bone-deep chill, Zarek spun about to reassure himself that Ami, at least, was alright, only to finally give vent to another ear-blistering antique curse. He'd had only a split second to digest the sight before the doors to their chamber, like all the others, shut and locked themselves fast. However, the scene chilled his blood. Within the pearl room where he'd left his Ami there had remained only the faintest hint of familiar magic 'static' in the suddenly frigid air and, on the floor below the oyster tank, a puddle…frozen solid.

Ami, however, was nowhere to be found.


End file.
